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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. squash — the sport
  4. can — to be able to
  5. last — finally
  6. can — a tin
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bore — to tire
  9. sharp — clever
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. kick — in football
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. can — a tin
  16. squash — to crush
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. bore — to drill
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. file — a line of people
  24. sharp — with an edge

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