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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: wave · hand · bear · saw · game · season · snap · deal

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. season — of the year
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. game — a match
  9. bear — the animal
  10. game — wild animals
  11. deal — to handle
  12. season — in sport
  13. saw — the tool
  14. hand — help
  15. hand — in cards
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. saw — the tool
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. snap — to click
  21. bear — the animal
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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