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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 116 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. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. degree — temperature
  5. file — a tool
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. sharp — clever
  8. plane — a tool
  9. degree — from a university
  10. cue — a signal
  11. degree — an amount
  12. file — a document
  13. game — a match
  14. file — a line of people
  15. mug — to rob
  16. mug — a face
  17. cue — for pool
  18. mug — a cup
  19. cue — a hint
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. game — wild animals
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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