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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. spell — letters
  3. cold — not warm
  4. board — a committee
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. hand — help
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. mate — to breed
  10. roll — a cake
  11. spell — a short time
  12. mate — a partner
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. cold — an illness
  16. board — to get on
  17. mate — a friend
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. roll — a list
  22. spell — magic
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. deal — to handle

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