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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 120 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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. bound — tied together
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. saw — the tool
  5. last — to go on
  6. sharp — clever
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bound — obliged
  9. last — final
  10. degree — temperature
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. mark — a grade
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. bound — certain
  17. degree — from a university
  18. foot — a measure
  19. deal — to handle
  20. mark — a trace
  21. last — finally
  22. degree — an amount
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. saw — the tool

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