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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: present · kid · deal · stand · cell · mark · hand · rock

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. cell — a phone
  3. stand — to bear
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — child
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. rock — music
  8. hand — in cards
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. rock — a stone
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. present — a gift
  13. kid — to tease
  14. present — there
  15. present — the time now
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. deal — to handle
  18. cell — in biology
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. hand — help
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. stand — on your feet

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