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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. charge — electricity
  3. sharp — clever
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. last — finally
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. spring — the season
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. spring — a coil
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. charge — a price
  16. charge — in control
  17. hand — help
  18. wind — moving air
  19. foot — a measure
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wind — moving air
  22. last — final
  23. spring — of water
  24. hand — in cards

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