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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. face — to confront
  5. face — to point toward
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. rush — hurry
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. shower — to wash
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. face — part of the head
  16. fall — to drop
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. perch — the fish
  23. shower — rain
  24. capital — a big letter

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