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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. deal — to handle
  3. present — there
  4. cold — not warm
  5. ball — a great time
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — the time now
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. stock — shares
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. lean — thin
  16. stock — goods
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. lean — to bend
  23. cold — an illness
  24. saw — the 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