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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 116 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. deal — to handle
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. staff — employees
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bark — to shout
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. staff — employees
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. staff — a stick
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. vault — a safe

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