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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 116 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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. degree — from a university
  4. deal — to handle
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. key — in music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. face — part of the head
  9. hand — help
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. sharp — clever
  13. wound — an injury
  14. face — to point toward
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — completely
  18. degree — an amount
  19. key — the most important part
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. face — to confront
  22. key — for a lock
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. degree — temperature

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