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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. hand — help
  3. can — a tin
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. sharp — clever
  6. cold — not warm
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. can — a tin
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. can — to be able to
  13. rush — hurry
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. snap — to click
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. lie — to recline
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. hand — in cards

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