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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mug — a cup
  4. press — newspapers
  5. mug — a face
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. field — farmland
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. press — to push
  11. field — for sport
  12. press — a publisher
  13. cap — of ice
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. field — a subject
  16. mug — to rob
  17. roll — a list
  18. roll — a cake
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. saw — the tool
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. cap — a hat
  24. sharp — clever

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