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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. wind — moving air
  4. foot — a measure
  5. pop — to visit
  6. lean — to bend
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. lean — thin
  9. bound — tied together
  10. pop — music
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. bound — obliged
  16. pop — soda
  17. bound — certain
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. season — of the year
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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