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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. fine — high quality
  3. deal — to handle
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. fine — all right
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. foot — a measure
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. club — for golf
  13. dip — to sink
  14. cold — not warm
  15. club — for dancing
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. cell — in biology
  20. club — a group
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cold — an illness
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. cell — in a prison

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