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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. rest — what's left
  3. ground — the earth
  4. chest — of your body
  5. ground — crushed
  6. chest — a box
  7. drill — the tool
  8. sharp — clever
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. plane — a tool
  13. season — of the year
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. wound — an injury
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. drill — a practice
  20. wound — an injury
  21. chest — of your body
  22. drill — army training
  23. season — in sport
  24. ground — a position

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