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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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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: mark · deal · bulb · temple · pit · land · hand · pitcher

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. land — ground
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. land — a country
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. mark — a trace
  11. pit — a hole
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. hand — help
  15. bulb — for light
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. mark — a grade
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. hand — in cards
  23. land — to come down
  24. deal — to handle

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