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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. mate — to breed
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. cap — of ice
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — of the year
  9. cap — a hat
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. mate — a partner
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. row — a line
  14. season — in sport
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — for paper
  18. row — to paddle
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. mate — a friend
  21. cap — a lid
  22. clip — to cut
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a match

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