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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. current — happening now
  6. fall — to drop
  7. season — of the year
  8. fall — the season
  9. row — to paddle
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. fall — to drop
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. row — a line
  15. sharp — clever
  16. snap — to click
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. current — of water
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. current — electric
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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