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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. tear — to rip
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mark — a trace
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. mark — a grade
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. stock — goods
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. stock — shares
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. plane — a tool
  24. kick — in football

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