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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. suit — clothes
  3. last — to go on
  4. game — wild animals
  5. suit — in cards
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. last — final
  8. pop — to visit
  9. suit — to fit
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wound — an injury
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. last — finally
  14. staff — employees
  15. tear — from crying
  16. wound — an injury
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. pop — soda
  19. game — a match
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — a stick
  23. pop — music
  24. tear — from crying

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