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

Word bank: deal · wind · chair · bat · ruler · pop

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pop — to visit
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. wind — moving air
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. pop — soda
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. deal — to handle
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — the animal
  18. wind — to turn a key

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