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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. sharp — clever
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — magic
  6. rock — a stone
  7. land — a country
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. land — to come down
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. pop — to visit
  12. land — ground
  13. bat — the animal
  14. spell — letters
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. rock — music
  17. date — the fruit
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bear — the animal
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — soda
  24. bear — the animal

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