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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: hand · cue · deal · present · kick · rash · file · mug

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. present — there
  3. rash — hasty
  4. deal — to handle
  5. hand — help
  6. present — the time now
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. cue — a signal
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. cue — a hint
  11. mug — to rob
  12. hand — in cards
  13. kick — in football
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. cue — for pool
  16. mug — a cup
  17. rash — a series
  18. mug — a face
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. present — a gift
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. file — a document
  24. deal — a big deal

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