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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. sharp — clever
  3. clip — to cut
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. root — of a plant
  7. rest — what's left
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — for paper
  11. rest — a break
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. bat — the animal
  14. root — of a word
  15. ground — a position
  16. clip — a video
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. ground — the earth
  20. root — the cause
  21. pass — a permit
  22. ground — crushed
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bat — for baseball

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