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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. pitch — completely
  4. court — of a king
  5. deal — to handle
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. prune — to trim
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — the arms race
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. sharp — clever
  12. court — of law
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. fall — the season
  16. race — a contest
  17. fall — to drop
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. chip — to eat
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. fall — to drop
  23. prune — to trim
  24. chip — for betting

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