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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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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: bowl · deal · lash · scale · kid · sharp · hand · chest

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. deal — to handle
  5. scale — size or range
  6. kid — to tease
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. chest — a box
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. kid — child
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — help
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. chest — of your body
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. chest — of your body
  22. sharp — clever
  23. scale — in music
  24. hand — in cards

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