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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. season — in sport
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. mate — a partner
  7. spring — of water
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mark — a grade
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. deal — to handle
  15. mate — to breed
  16. spring — the season
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bear — the animal
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. mark — a trace
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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