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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: deal · kick · shower · pitch · prune · season · game · hand

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. pitch — completely
  3. kick — in football
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. deal — to handle
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. shower — to wash
  10. season — of the year
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. hand — help
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. shower — rain
  16. prune — to trim
  17. hand — in cards
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. season — in sport
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. prune — to trim
  24. hand — part of the body

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