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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. ball — a great time
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. charge — a price
  7. spring — a coil
  8. ball — a dance
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. deal — to handle
  12. spring — the season
  13. mug — to rob
  14. bat — the animal
  15. shower — to wash
  16. prune — to trim
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. shower — rain
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. mug — a cup
  22. charge — in control
  23. charge — electricity
  24. spring — of water

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