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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. staff — a stick
  3. fine — high quality
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. key — in music
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. lean — to bend
  10. fine — all right
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. ground — the earth
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. key — for a lock
  16. lean — thin
  17. stem — to come from
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. key — the most important part
  22. ground — crushed
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. sharp — clever

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