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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mate — a friend
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. hand — help
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. spring — the season
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. spring — a coil
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. hand — in cards

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