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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: straw · cell · ground · sharp · season · tube · chip · fine

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. 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. fine — high quality
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. cell — a phone
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. tube — a container
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. ground — the earth
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. season — of the year
  11. chip — for betting
  12. ground — crushed
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. chip — to eat
  15. season — in sport
  16. sharp — clever
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. fine — all right
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. ground — a position
  24. 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