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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. rest — what's left
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. sharp — clever
  5. last — to go on
  6. rest — a break
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. craft — boats
  9. kid — to tease
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. last — final
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. rest — what's left
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. last — finally
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. kid — child
  20. craft — a skill
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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