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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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 song
  3. mug — to rob
  4. track — to keep track
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. rash — hasty
  8. current — of water
  9. kick — in football
  10. current — electric
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. bat — the animal
  13. sharp — clever
  14. current — happening now
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. track — a path
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. mug — a face
  19. rash — a series
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. mug — a cup

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