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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. vault — a safe
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rash — a series
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. swing — to play on
  9. spell — a short time
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. sharp — clever
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bat — the animal
  14. can — to be able to
  15. spell — magic
  16. can — a tin
  17. spell — letters
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. swing — music
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. hand — help
  22. rash — hasty
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. can — a tin

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