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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 120 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. bass — the fish
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. spell — letters
  13. dip — to sink
  14. spell — magic
  15. bass — low music
  16. capital — money
  17. spell — a short time
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. sharp — clever
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. capital — a city
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. bass — the instrument

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