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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. wound — an injury
  5. craft — boats
  6. degree — temperature
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — an amount
  9. drill — army training
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wind — moving air
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. drill — a practice
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. craft — a skill
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. saw — the tool
  20. degree — from a university
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. drill — the tool
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. wind — moving air

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