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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. face — to confront
  5. bat — the animal
  6. face — to point toward
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. sharp — clever
  9. face — part of the head
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. band — a music group
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. last — finally
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. band — a ring
  21. last — final
  22. last — to go on
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. mine — an explosive

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