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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. spell — magic
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. dip — to sink
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. wake — a trail
  7. scale — in music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. sharp — clever
  12. tear — to rip
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — a short time
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. tear — from crying
  20. scale — size or range
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. tube — the underground
  24. rush — hurry

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