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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 116 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.

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

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

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

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. court — for sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. shower — to wash
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. net — in sport
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. court — of a king
  10. shower — rain
  11. court — of law
  12. charge — electricity
  13. deal — to handle
  14. wake — a trail
  15. net — after costs
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. charge — a price
  18. charge — in control

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