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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. net — in sport
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. net — for catching
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. swing — to play on
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. net — after costs
  11. roll — a list
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. foot — a measure
  15. hand — in cards
  16. swing — music
  17. root — of a word
  18. root — of a plant
  19. hand — help
  20. root — the cause
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. swing — in golf

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