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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. tube — the underground
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. date — the fruit
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. last — final
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. sharp — clever
  16. tube — a container
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wake — a trail
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. last — finally
  21. last — to go on
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. arm — part of the body

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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