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

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. pass — a permit
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. bulb — for light
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bat — the animal
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — a container
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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