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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. prune — to trim
  4. face — part of the head
  5. prune — to trim
  6. foot — a measure
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. sharp — clever
  10. object — a thing
  11. face — to point toward
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. face — to confront
  14. object — an aim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. stem — to come from
  17. bat — the animal
  18. season — of the year
  19. season — in sport
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. object — to protest
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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