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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. race — the arms race
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. bat — the animal
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. file — a document
  11. mark — a grade
  12. rule — government
  13. rule — a law
  14. file — a tool
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mark — a trace
  18. file — a line of people
  19. sharp — clever
  20. race — a contest
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. race — humankind
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — of the leg

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