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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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. file — a line of people
  4. mark — a grade
  5. rule — government
  6. snap — to click
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. tear — to rip
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. file — a tool
  12. sharp — clever
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. tear — from crying
  15. file — a document
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. mark — a trace
  18. wake — a trail
  19. rule — a law
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wave — of the sea

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