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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. staff — employees
  3. net — in sport
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. file — a line of people
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. deal — to handle
  9. game — a match
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. net — after costs
  12. bat — the animal
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. staff — employees
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. file — a tool
  17. game — wild animals
  18. net — for catching
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. file — a document
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. staff — a stick
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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