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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  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 — exactly
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. dip — to sink
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. court — of a king
  8. tear — from crying
  9. court — for sport
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. tear — from crying
  15. hand — in cards
  16. kid — child
  17. tear — to rip
  18. court — of law
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. deal — to handle
  22. hand — help
  23. kid — to tease
  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