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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. row — to paddle
  3. deal — to handle
  4. foot — a measure
  5. march — music
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. degree — from a university
  8. swing — in golf
  9. march — the month
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. degree — temperature
  13. swing — music
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. swing — to play on
  19. row — a line
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. march — the month
  23. degree — an amount
  24. pitcher — a jug

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