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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. firm — decided
  4. firm — steady
  5. field — farmland
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. deal — to handle
  9. snap — to click
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. row — to paddle
  12. vault — a safe
  13. kick — in football
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. field — a subject
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. row — a line
  22. firm — a company
  23. field — for sport
  24. kick — a thrill

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