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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. staff — a stick
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. chest — of your body
  5. sharp — clever
  6. chest — a box
  7. staff — employees
  8. staff — employees
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. spring — the season
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. tear — to rip
  13. spring — a coil
  14. rock — music
  15. plane — a tool
  16. rock — a stone
  17. chest — of your body
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — from crying
  24. spring — of water

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