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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 116 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've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. tear — from crying
  6. suit — to fit
  7. kid — to tease
  8. suit — clothes
  9. wax — to grow
  10. kid — child
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. suit — in cards
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. tear — to rip
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. cell — a phone
  20. tear — from crying
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. branch — a division
  23. pound — a weight
  24. wax — for sculpting

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