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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: bowl · stand · deal · degree · last · kid · fall · hand

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hand — in cards
  3. last — to go on
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stand — to bear
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. deal — to handle
  12. last — final
  13. last — finally
  14. kid — to tease
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. fall — the season
  19. hand — help
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kid — child
  22. degree — from a university
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. deal — an agreement

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