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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: rest · game · mark · straw · content · drill · deal · kick

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. rest — a break
  5. kick — in football
  6. drill — a practice
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mark — a grade
  12. content — the amount
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. mark — a trace
  16. drill — army training
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. content — happy
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. drill — the tool
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. deal — to handle
  24. game — wild animals

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