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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rock — music
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rock — a stone
  7. perch — the fish
  8. wind — moving air
  9. fine — all right
  10. wound — an injury
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wind — moving air
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. stock — goods
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. sharp — clever
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — shares

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