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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 116 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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. can — a tin
  4. tube — a container
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. pit — in a race
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. face — to point toward
  10. pit — a hole
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. can — a tin
  14. bear — the animal
  15. sharp — clever
  16. face — part of the head
  17. bat — the animal
  18. face — to confront
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tube — the underground
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. can — to be able to
  24. bear — the animal

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