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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: kid · wound · deal · ground · plane · staff · bass · snap

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. ground — a position
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. bass — low music
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. wound — an injury
  8. kid — child
  9. snap — to click
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. staff — employees
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. ground — the earth
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. wound — an injury
  19. ground — crushed
  20. bass — the fish
  21. plane — a tool
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — to tease

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