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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. wound — an injury
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. clip — to cut
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. pop — music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. bear — the animal
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. clip — a video
  13. pop — soda
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. rush — hurry
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. bear — the animal
  18. perch — the fish
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. wound — an injury
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. pop — to visit
  23. deal — to handle
  24. clip — for paper

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