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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. staff — employees
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. staff — a stick
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. game — a match
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. game — wild animals
  10. cell — in biology
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wax — to grow
  16. cell — a phone
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. stem — to come from
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. deal — to handle
  22. toast — bread
  23. staff — employees
  24. game — a kind of play

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