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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. spring — a coil
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. mark — a grade
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. mug — a cup
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. spring — of water
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. mug — to rob
  20. spring — the season
  21. mark — a trace
  22. sharp — clever
  23. dip — to sink
  24. mug — a face

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