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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. track — a song
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. fall — to drop
  7. wind — moving air
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. wind — moving air
  11. deal — to handle
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. fall — to drop
  14. track — to keep track
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. shower — to wash
  17. net — in sport
  18. track — a path
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. net — for catching
  22. shower — rain
  23. fall — the season
  24. net — after costs

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