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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. scale — in music
  9. sharp — clever
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. fork — in a road
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. game — a match
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. deal — to handle
  22. scale — size or range
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. game — wild animals

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