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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 120 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. file — a line of people
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. march — the month
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. land — to come down
  10. band — a ring
  11. file — a tool
  12. land — a country
  13. band — a music group
  14. file — a document
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. land — ground
  17. march — the month
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. deal — to handle
  23. march — music
  24. cabinet — ministers

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