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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 124 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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. tear — to rip
  4. firm — decided
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. firm — steady
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cell — in biology
  11. firm — a company
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — an illness
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the fish
  20. cell — a phone
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. ground — crushed
  23. deal — to handle
  24. ground — a position

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