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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: straw · kick · fine · cell · bear · season · deal · capital

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  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. fine — high quality
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. capital — a city
  8. capital — money
  9. fine — all right
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bear — the animal
  12. kick — in football
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. deal — to handle
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. cell — a phone
  21. season — of the year
  22. cell — in biology
  23. season — in sport
  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