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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: deal · cold · game · staff · bore · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. club — a group
  3. deal — to handle
  4. cold — not warm
  5. staff — employees
  6. bore — to drill
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bore — to tire
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. game — wild animals
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — a match
  15. club — for dancing
  16. staff — a stick
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. staff — employees

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