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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. rest — what's left
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rest — what's left
  5. degree — temperature
  6. rest — a break
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. spring — of water
  9. spell — a short time
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. degree — an amount
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. spring — the season
  16. degree — from a university
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. spring — a coil
  19. cold — not warm
  20. spell — magic
  21. deal — to handle
  22. cold — an illness
  23. spell — letters
  24. coach — a trainer

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