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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: cold · deal · suit · rush · hand · roll · ground · lie

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. hand — in cards
  3. roll — a list
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. roll — a cake
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ground — a position
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. suit — in cards
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. suit — clothes
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. lie — to recline
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. deal — to handle
  17. cold — an illness
  18. ground — the earth
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. suit — to fit
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. ground — crushed
  24. cold — not warm

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