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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 116 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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. snap — to click
  3. band — a music group
  4. wound — an injury
  5. sharp — clever
  6. present — there
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. present — the time now
  13. mate — a partner
  14. band — a ring
  15. hand — in cards
  16. present — a gift
  17. mate — a friend
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. hand — help
  20. mate — to breed
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. wound — an injury
  24. nail — on a finger

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