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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. wake — a trail
  6. race — the arms race
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. squash — to crush
  12. race — humankind
  13. rock — music
  14. sharp — clever
  15. race — a contest
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. rock — a stone
  18. hand — help
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. squash — the sport
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rock — to move gently

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