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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. date — the fruit
  3. shower — to wash
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. degree — temperature
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. club — a group
  9. degree — from a university
  10. court — of a king
  11. stem — to come from
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. shower — rain
  14. court — of law
  15. club — for golf
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. deal — to handle
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. club — for dancing
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. court — for sport
  22. degree — an amount
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. snap — to click

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