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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. tear — from crying
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. tear — to rip
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. snap — to click
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. pass — a permit
  11. vault — a safe
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. tear — from crying
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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