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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spring — the season
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. wake — a trail
  10. net — after costs
  11. kick — in football
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. deal — to handle
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. spring — of water
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. rash — a series
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. bat — the animal
  22. net — for catching
  23. net — in sport
  24. rash — hasty

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