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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. pound — a weight
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. sharp — clever
  9. mate — to breed
  10. cue — a signal
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. cue — for pool
  14. capital — a city
  15. foot — a measure
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. mate — a partner
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. capital — money
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. snap — to click
  22. content — happy
  23. cue — a hint
  24. content — the amount

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