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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: cell · rush · plane · arm · deal · kid · mate · drill

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. kid — child
  3. mate — a friend
  4. kid — to tease
  5. drill — army training
  6. rush — hurry
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — in biology
  9. deal — to handle
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. mate — a partner
  12. drill — a practice
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. drill — the tool
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. cell — a phone
  22. mate — to breed
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. plane — a tool

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