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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: cold · spring · lie · band · firm · rule · arm · deal

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. firm — decided
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. spring — of water
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. firm — steady
  9. cold — not warm
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. band — a ring
  12. rule — a law
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. band — a music group
  16. firm — a company
  17. rule — government
  18. spring — a coil
  19. lie — to recline
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. cold — an illness
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. spring — the season
  24. rule — to rule out

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