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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 120 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. stock — shares
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. stock — goods
  7. clip — to cut
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. tube — the underground
  12. cold — not warm
  13. sharp — clever
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. clip — a video
  16. cold — an illness
  17. tube — a container
  18. clip — for paper
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. kick — in football
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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