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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 120 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 · ground · cold · racket · club · can · fork · chip

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ground — a position
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. can — a tin
  9. fork — in a road
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. chip — to eat
  12. deal — to handle
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. chip — for betting
  15. club — a group
  16. can — a tin
  17. club — for golf
  18. can — to be able to
  19. club — for dancing
  20. ground — the earth
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. racket — for tennis
  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