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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wind — moving air
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. shower — rain
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rock — a stone
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. rock — music
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. wind — moving air
  17. row — a line
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. cold — an illness
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. row — to paddle
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — not warm

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