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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · craft · bear · sharp · march · cell

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. march — the month
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. cell — a phone
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. kick — in football
  9. march — music
  10. sharp — clever
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. craft — a skill
  13. bear — the animal
  14. craft — boats
  15. bear — the animal
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. march — the month
  18. cell — in biology

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