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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 · pitcher · ground · content · band · object · racket · race

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. ground — crushed
  3. band — a music group
  4. object — an aim
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. band — a ring
  8. object — a thing
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. ground — a position
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. content — the amount
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. ground — the earth
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — a contest
  21. deal — to handle
  22. content — happy
  23. object — to protest
  24. race — humankind

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