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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 116 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: race · pitch · straw · spell · hand · season · deal · shower

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. shower — to wash
  3. race — a contest
  4. deal — to handle
  5. season — in sport
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. hand — help
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. spell — magic
  11. hand — in cards
  12. pitch — completely
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. spell — letters
  15. race — humankind
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. race — the arms race
  20. season — of the year
  21. shower — rain
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. spell — a short time
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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