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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  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. deal — a big deal
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. degree — from a university
  4. kid — child
  5. mark — a trace
  6. prune — to trim
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. club — for golf
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. content — happy
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. deal — to handle
  14. prune — to trim
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. club — a group
  17. mark — a grade
  18. content — the amount
  19. club — for dancing
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. kid — to tease
  23. degree — an amount
  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