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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. deal — to handle
  5. land — to come down
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. tube — the underground
  9. chip — to eat
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — a weight
  12. tube — a container
  13. land — ground
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. chip — for betting
  17. field — for sport
  18. bat — the animal
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — farmland
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. bore — to tire
  24. land — a country

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