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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. lean — thin
  5. sharp — clever
  6. mark — a trace
  7. bat — the animal
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. shower — rain
  10. mark — a grade
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. shower — to wash
  14. squash — the sport
  15. lean — to bend
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — in a road
  18. squash — to crush
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. present — the time now
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — there
  24. bat — for baseball

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