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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. stock — shares
  7. lean — thin
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. spell — magic
  12. lean — to bend
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. deal — to handle
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. game — a match
  18. spell — letters
  19. stock — goods
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. spell — a short time
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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