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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. game — wild animals
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. spell — letters
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. hand — help
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. branch — a division
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. deal — to handle
  14. track — to keep track
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. game — a match
  18. hand — in cards
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. track — a song
  22. spell — magic
  23. track — a path
  24. kick — in football

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