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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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. perch — for a bird
  4. mug — a face
  5. mug — to rob
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cold — not warm
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stock — goods
  15. perch — the fish
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mug — a cup
  18. stock — shares
  19. wind — moving air
  20. foot — a measure
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. deal — to handle
  24. cold — an illness

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