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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. spell — magic
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. ground — crushed
  7. net — in sport
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. net — after costs
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. net — for catching
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. cell — a phone
  15. kick — in football
  16. spell — letters
  17. deal — to handle
  18. spell — a short time
  19. cell — in biology
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. ground — the earth
  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