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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 116 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. hand — help
  4. degree — temperature
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. degree — from a university
  8. rush — hurry
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. saw — the tool
  15. rock — music
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. deal — to handle
  18. degree — an amount
  19. saw — the tool
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — to come from
  23. rock — a stone
  24. deal — a big deal

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