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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. net — in sport
  7. lie — to recline
  8. degree — from a university
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. sharp — clever
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. net — after costs
  16. band — a ring
  17. band — a music group
  18. bore — to tire
  19. net — for catching
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bore — to drill
  22. degree — an amount
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. degree — temperature

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