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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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468
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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. suit — clothes
  3. chest — of your body
  4. row — to paddle
  5. suit — to fit
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. suit — in cards
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. chest — of your body
  16. kick — in football
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. row — a line
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. chest — a box
  23. fork — in a road
  24. straw — a straw man

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