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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 120 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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. hand — help
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. hand — in cards
  10. foot — a measure
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. sharp — clever
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. fine — all right
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. wake — a trail

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