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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 120 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. That must've been a ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. fine — high quality
  4. foot — a measure
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. pit — in a race
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. rush — hurry
  14. track — a song
  15. pit — a hole
  16. sharp — clever
  17. track — a path
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — to wash
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. bear — the animal
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. fine — all right

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