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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. ground — crushed
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. cue — a hint
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. capital — money
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. deal — to handle
  13. cue — for pool
  14. board — to get on
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. cold — not warm
  17. board — a committee
  18. foot — a measure
  19. capital — a city
  20. ground — the earth
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. cue — a signal
  23. foot — the bottom
  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