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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. cell — in biology
  3. chest — a box
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cell — a phone
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. band — a ring
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. band — a music group
  11. chest — of your body
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. court — of a king
  16. chest — of your body
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. deal — to handle
  19. roll — a list
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. roll — a cake
  23. court — for sport
  24. court — of law

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