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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rock — music
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — crushed
  8. lean — thin
  9. lean — to bend
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. hand — help
  16. pound — a weight
  17. rock — a stone
  18. ground — a position
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. ground — the earth
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — clever
  23. deal — to handle
  24. sharp — exactly

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