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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. suit — in cards
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — for paper
  6. fall — the season
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. race — the arms race
  10. race — a contest
  11. fall — to drop
  12. sharp — clever
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. fall — to drop
  15. foot — a measure
  16. suit — to fit
  17. wind — moving air
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. race — humankind
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. clip — a video
  22. wind — moving air
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. suit — clothes

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