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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. drill — the tool
  5. field — for sport
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chest — a box
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. deal — to handle
  12. drill — a practice
  13. club — for dancing
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chest — of your body
  17. drill — army training
  18. chest — of your body
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. snap — to click

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