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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 120 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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. game — wild animals
  3. march — the month
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. tube — a container
  6. stock — goods
  7. firm — steady
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. rash — a series
  11. deal — to handle
  12. firm — a company
  13. march — the month
  14. stock — shares
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. rash — hasty
  20. firm — decided
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. tube — the underground
  23. march — music
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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