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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. hand — in cards
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. rule — a law
  5. net — in sport
  6. tear — to rip
  7. deal — to handle
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. chip — for betting
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. tear — from crying
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. net — after costs
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. net — for catching
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. sharp — clever
  19. hand — help
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. chip — to eat
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. rule — government

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