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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 120 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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. board — to get on
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. board — a committee
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. squash — the sport
  16. dip — to sink
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. kick — in football
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. court — of a king
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. squash — to crush

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