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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. ground — a position
  4. present — there
  5. present — the time now
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. present — a gift
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. tube — a container
  12. hand — help
  13. ground — the earth
  14. mark — a grade
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. ball — a dance
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. hand — in cards
  20. tube — the underground
  21. ground — crushed
  22. deal — to handle
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mark — a trace

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