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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. content — happy
  3. staff — employees
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. foot — a measure
  6. sharp — clever
  7. spring — of water
  8. staff — employees
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bass — the fish
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. spring — the season
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. bass — low music
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. staff — a stick
  22. spring — a coil
  23. content — the amount
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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