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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 always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. mug — a face
  5. last — to go on
  6. craft — a skill
  7. mug — a cup
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. mug — to rob
  10. kick — in football
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. wake — a trail
  13. cell — a phone
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. craft — boats
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. sharp — clever
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. last — finally
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. last — final

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