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

Word bank: pass · hand · kid · wake · snap · lean · cap · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. lean — thin
  4. sharp — clever
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. lean — to bend
  7. kid — child
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. cap — a lid
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. hand — help
  12. pass — a permit
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — in cards
  15. wake — a trail
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. kid — to tease
  18. snap — to click
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. cap — of ice
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cap — a hat

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