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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. tear — from crying
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. firm — decided
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. hand — help
  16. rush — hurry
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wind — moving air
  20. firm — steady
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. sharp — clever
  24. firm — a company

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