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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. saw — the tool
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. ground — crushed
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. spring — of water
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. ground — a position
  17. spring — a coil
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. spring — the season
  21. sharp — clever
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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