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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. last — to go on
  3. last — finally
  4. last — final
  5. cue — a hint
  6. sharp — clever
  7. degree — temperature
  8. cue — a signal
  9. swing — music
  10. present — the time now
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. present — a gift
  14. degree — an amount
  15. cue — for pool
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. present — there
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. degree — from a university
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — to bear

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