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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. ground — the earth
  9. wind — moving air
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. race — humankind
  12. ground — a position
  13. vault — a safe
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wind — moving air
  17. race — the arms race
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bear — the animal
  24. race — a contest

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