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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. track — a path
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. track — a song
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. file — a tool
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. scale — size or range
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. scale — in music
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. file — a line of people
  16. branch — a division
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. file — a document
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pass — a permit
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. branch — of a tree

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