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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. spring — of water
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. bound — certain
  6. chip — for betting
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. kid — to tease
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. wind — moving air
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — a coil
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bound — obliged
  21. chip — to eat
  22. kid — child
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. swing — in golf

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