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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. club — for dancing
  3. degree — an amount
  4. object — an aim
  5. club — a group
  6. degree — from a university
  7. firm — steady
  8. game — wild animals
  9. pass — a permit
  10. object — a thing
  11. field — for sport
  12. object — to protest
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. firm — decided
  15. game — a match
  16. field — a subject
  17. degree — temperature
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. firm — a company
  22. field — farmland
  23. club — for golf
  24. deal — to handle

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