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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. land — a country
  4. drill — a practice
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. land — ground
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. deal — to handle
  11. drill — the tool
  12. cold — an illness
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. drill — army training
  15. saw — the tool
  16. last — finally
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. last — final
  19. last — to go on
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. cold — not warm
  23. land — to come down
  24. saw — the tool

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