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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. mark — a grade
  3. swing — music
  4. fall — to drop
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. file — a tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. swing — to play on
  11. fine — all right
  12. mark — a trace
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. fall — the season
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. saw — the tool
  18. fine — high quality
  19. file — a document
  20. swing — in golf
  21. fall — to drop
  22. file — a line of people
  23. sharp — clever
  24. hand — part of the body

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