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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. last — final
  3. deal — to handle
  4. last — finally
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. season — of the year
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. perch — the fish
  15. stock — goods
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. rash — a series
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. stock — shares
  22. last — to go on
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. season — in sport

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