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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. snap — to click
  4. net — after costs
  5. bound — tied together
  6. sharp — clever
  7. cap — a lid
  8. net — in sport
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. shower — to wash
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bound — certain
  14. net — for catching
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. bear — the animal
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — the earth
  20. cap — a hat
  21. shower — rain
  22. ground — a position
  23. bound — obliged
  24. cap — of ice

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