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

Word bank: deal · chest · stand · net · saw · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. saw — the tool
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. net — after costs
  5. stand — to bear
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. deal — to handle
  8. net — in sport
  9. chest — of your body
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. chest — of your body
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. net — for catching
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. kid — to tease
  16. chest — a box
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. saw — the tool

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