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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 124 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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. face — to point toward
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. tube — a container
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stock — goods
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. deal — to handle
  11. tube — the underground
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. face — to confront
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a tool
  16. ball — a dance
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. ball — a great time
  24. face — part of the head

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