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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. staff — employees
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — a city
  7. bulb — for light
  8. mug — a face
  9. mug — a cup
  10. staff — employees
  11. mug — to rob
  12. march — music
  13. spell — letters
  14. march — the month
  15. kid — child
  16. deal — to handle
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. march — the month
  19. bulb — for light
  20. kid — to tease
  21. capital — money
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. staff — a stick
  24. spell — magic

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