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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pop — music
  4. game — a match
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pass — a permit
  7. kid — child
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. kid — to tease
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. deal — to handle
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. game — wild animals
  20. snap — to click
  21. pop — soda
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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