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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. sharp — clever
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. staff — employees
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — the tool
  7. pop — to visit
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. ground — a position
  11. mark — a trace
  12. pop — soda
  13. mark — a grade
  14. rule — government
  15. staff — a stick
  16. rule — a law
  17. staff — employees
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wax — to grow
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. pop — music

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