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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: rock · deal · cold · hand · rash · key · mate · season

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  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. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. key — for a lock
  5. season — in sport
  6. mate — a friend
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. key — in music
  9. rash — a series
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mate — to breed
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. season — of the year
  17. rash — hasty
  18. key — the most important part
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — help
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rock — a stone
  23. mate — a partner
  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