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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 120 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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. deal — to handle
  4. march — the month
  5. fall — the season
  6. bat — the animal
  7. fall — to drop
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. rash — hasty
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. lie — to recline
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. rash — a series
  20. march — music
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. game — a match
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. march — the month

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