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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. shower — rain
  3. object — an aim
  4. march — music
  5. object — a thing
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. staff — employees
  8. season — in sport
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. field — farmland
  12. field — for sport
  13. spring — of water
  14. field — a subject
  15. staff — employees
  16. march — the month
  17. spring — a coil
  18. staff — a stick
  19. sharp — clever
  20. season — of the year
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. march — the month
  23. object — to protest
  24. spring — the season

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