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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.

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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. clip — for paper
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — a box
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bank — for money
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. sharp — clever
  10. mate — a friend
  11. mate — to breed
  12. field — for sport
  13. chest — of your body
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. clip — to cut
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chest — of your body
  20. field — farmland
  21. bank — of a river
  22. clip — a video
  23. bank — for money
  24. field — a subject

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