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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: deal · last · season · kick · hand · club · cabinet · pop

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pop — to visit
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. season — of the year
  6. last — finally
  7. season — in sport
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. club — for golf
  12. last — to go on
  13. pop — music
  14. kick — in football
  15. club — a group
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. pop — soda
  18. hand — in cards
  19. deal — to handle
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. hand — help
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. club — for dancing

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