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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. wind — moving air
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. stock — shares
  7. deal — to handle
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wound — an injury
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. fine — high quality
  17. fine — all right
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. last — to go on
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stock — goods
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. lash — to lash out

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