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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. last — final
  3. deal — to handle
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. last — to go on
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. hand — help
  9. rest — a break
  10. wind — moving air
  11. band — a ring
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. rest — what's left
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. last — finally
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. wind — moving air
  20. hand — in cards
  21. band — a music group
  22. dip — to sink
  23. rest — what's left
  24. band — a rubber band

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