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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: hand · deal · land · press · nail · row · hide · kid

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — to handle
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. press — to push
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — child
  8. land — ground
  9. land — to come down
  10. row — a line
  11. press — a publisher
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. hand — in cards
  16. press — newspapers
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hand — help
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. row — to paddle
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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