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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. ground — a position
  3. march — music
  4. chip — to eat
  5. march — the month
  6. spell — magic
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. content — happy
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. staff — a stick
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. staff — employees
  15. spell — a short time
  16. staff — employees
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. ground — the earth
  20. spell — letters
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. march — the month
  23. branch — a division
  24. chip — for betting

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