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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. hand — help
  3. deal — to handle
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. scale — in music
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. net — for catching
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. net — in sport
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. hand — in cards
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — a grade
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. kid — to tease
  20. scale — size or range
  21. net — after costs
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. stand — to bear

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