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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 120 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: cell · craft · wound · sharp · pound · cold · tube · dip

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. wound — an injury
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cell — in biology
  5. tube — the underground
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a skill
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. pound — a weight
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. cell — a phone
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. cold — not warm
  17. craft — boats
  18. tube — a container
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. cold — an illness
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. wound — an injury

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