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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 120 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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. bass — low music
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. tear — from crying
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spell — a short time
  8. bear — the animal
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. tear — from crying
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. snap — to click
  18. bass — the fish
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bear — the animal
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. spell — letters
  23. sharp — clever
  24. spell — magic

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