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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. sharp — clever
  3. staff — a stick
  4. last — final
  5. pit — a hole
  6. dip — to sink
  7. rush — hurry
  8. last — to go on
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pit — in a race
  11. row — a line
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. staff — employees
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. shower — to wash
  19. last — finally
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. staff — employees
  22. row — to paddle
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. sharp — with an edge

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