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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cell — a phone
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. squash — the sport
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. rest — a break
  12. fine — high quality
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. squash — to crush
  17. cell — in biology
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rest — what's left
  24. fine — all right

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