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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. game — a match
  4. deal — to handle
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. kid — child
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. track — to keep track
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. bat — the animal
  12. kid — to tease
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fall — the season
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. track — a path
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. game — wild animals
  23. track — a song
  24. bat — in an idiom

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