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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. mark — a grade
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. board — to get on
  8. mark — a trace
  9. stem — to come from
  10. kid — to tease
  11. pit — in a race
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. pit — a hole
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — a series
  17. board — a committee
  18. rash — hasty
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. kid — child
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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