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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  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. deal — an agreement
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. spell — magic
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — a phone
  10. deal — to handle
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pound — a weight
  13. game — wild animals
  14. mark — a grade
  15. fine — high quality
  16. game — a match
  17. spell — letters
  18. mark — a trace
  19. cell — in biology
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. wax — to grow
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — a penalty
  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