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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. cold — an illness
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. bank — of a river
  5. cold — not warm
  6. court — of a king
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. vault — a safe
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bank — for money
  16. court — for sport
  17. tube — the underground
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. court — of law
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — to shout
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bank — for money
  24. sharp — clever

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