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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. cell — a phone
  4. spell — magic
  5. fall — the season
  6. deal — to handle
  7. land — a country
  8. cap — of ice
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. spell — letters
  12. cap — a lid
  13. sharp — clever
  14. bore — to tire
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cap — a hat
  17. fall — to drop
  18. land — ground
  19. cell — in biology
  20. land — to come down
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. spell — a short time
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. bore — to drill

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