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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. fine — high quality
  6. content — the amount
  7. march — the month
  8. shower — rain
  9. firm — a company
  10. shower — to wash
  11. sharp — clever
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. march — music
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. firm — decided
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. race — a contest
  19. firm — steady
  20. race — the arms race
  21. march — the month
  22. content — happy
  23. race — humankind
  24. chest — of your body

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