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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. wind — moving air
  4. pass — a permit
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. rash — a series
  8. mug — a cup
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. scale — in music
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. drill — a practice
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. sharp — clever
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. mug — a face
  19. wind — moving air
  20. drill — army training
  21. scale — size or range
  22. mug — to rob
  23. rash — hasty
  24. drill — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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