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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. field — farmland
  5. mark — a grade
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — for paper
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — boats
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. toast — bread
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. foot — a measure
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. clip — a video
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. mark — a trace
  19. bass — the fish
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. bass — low music
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. toast — the most admired

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