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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. race — humankind
  4. kid — child
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. season — in sport
  7. wind — moving air
  8. season — of the year
  9. bass — low music
  10. root — of a plant
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. root — of a word
  13. race — a contest
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. root — the cause
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bear — the animal
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. wind — moving air
  23. kid — to tease
  24. race — the arms race

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