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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 116 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. content — the amount
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. capital — money
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. row — to paddle
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. sharp — clever
  16. rush — hurry
  17. content — happy
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. row — a line
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. capital — a city
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. row — a quarrel

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