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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. lean — to bend
  3. sharp — clever
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. deal — to handle
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cell — a phone
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. plane — a tool
  12. fork — in a road
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. shower — rain
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. fork — a garden tool

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