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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: mouse · kid · hide · net · deal · cabinet · race · key

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. net — for catching
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. key — for a lock
  7. net — after costs
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. deal — to handle
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. key — the most important part
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. net — in sport
  14. race — a contest
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. kid — child
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. kid — to tease
  20. key — in music
  21. race — humankind
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. race — the arms race
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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