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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: file · bat · wound · leaves · suit · chip · snap · sharp

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. file — a tool
  6. suit — clothes
  7. suit — in cards
  8. suit — to fit
  9. chip — for betting
  10. file — a line of people
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. wound — an injury
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wound — an injury
  18. file — a document
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. chip — to eat
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. leaves — of a tree

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