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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — in cards
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — a match
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. game — wild animals
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. deal — to handle
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. lean — to bend
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. lean — thin
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bat — the animal
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bulb — for light

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