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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 116 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. can — to be able to
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. sharp — clever
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mine — for digging
  15. kid — child
  16. can — a tin
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. can — a tin
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bowl — to roll

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