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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. prune — to trim
  3. sharp — clever
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. hand — help
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wound — an injury
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. fork — in a road
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wound — an injury
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. sharp — with an edge

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