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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. current — electric
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. suit — in cards
  6. land — a country
  7. craft — a skill
  8. season — of the year
  9. craft — boats
  10. cell — in biology
  11. ground — crushed
  12. cell — a phone
  13. suit — clothes
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. ground — the earth
  17. land — ground
  18. current — happening now
  19. suit — to fit
  20. land — to come down
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. ground — a position
  23. deal — to handle
  24. current — of water

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