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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rash — hasty
  3. vault — a safe
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rush — hurry
  7. rash — a series
  8. land — a country
  9. kid — child
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. can — to be able to
  13. drill — army training
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. land — to come down
  16. can — a tin
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. can — a tin
  19. kid — to tease
  20. drill — a practice
  21. land — ground
  22. drill — the tool
  23. sharp — clever
  24. rush — to hurry

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