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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: game · mine · rash · kid · safe · tube · staff · content

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. content — the amount
  3. game — a match
  4. mine — for digging
  5. game — wild animals
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. staff — employees
  8. content — happy
  9. kid — to tease
  10. rash — hasty
  11. tube — the underground
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. kid — child
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. staff — employees
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. staff — a stick
  21. tube — a container
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com