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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: deal · bass · row · staff · bore · kid · wind · cue

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cue — a hint
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. staff — employees
  5. row — a line
  6. kid — child
  7. wind — moving air
  8. staff — a stick
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. deal — to handle
  13. row — to paddle
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. cue — a signal
  16. bore — to tire
  17. staff — employees
  18. cue — for pool
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. bore — to drill
  22. bass — the fish
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bass — low music

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