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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fine — all right
  3. roll — a list
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. roll — a cake
  6. land — to come down
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. land — ground
  9. spell — a short time
  10. sharp — clever
  11. fine — high quality
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. dip — to sink
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. spell — magic
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. spell — letters
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. land — a country
  24. sharp — exactly

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