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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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. hand — help
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. kid — to tease
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — the tool
  10. race — the arms race
  11. lean — to bend
  12. race — humankind
  13. staff — employees
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. staff — a stick
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. race — a contest
  18. kid — child
  19. drill — army training
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. staff — employees
  22. lean — thin
  23. sharp — clever
  24. hand — in cards

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