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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. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. root — of a word
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. face — part of the head
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. can — to be able to
  8. tear — to rip
  9. mate — a friend
  10. face — to confront
  11. file — a line of people
  12. deal — to handle
  13. tear — from crying
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. can — a tin
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. face — to point toward
  18. file — a document
  19. tear — from crying
  20. vault — a safe
  21. root — of a plant
  22. can — a tin
  23. file — a tool
  24. root — the cause

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