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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: sharp · wind · cell · lean · mouse · degree · bass · spring

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. wind — moving air
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. bass — low music
  6. wind — moving air
  7. degree — an amount
  8. lean — to bend
  9. degree — temperature
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. spring — of water
  15. spring — a coil
  16. cell — a phone
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — the fish
  19. sharp — clever
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. spring — the season
  22. degree — from a university
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. lean — thin

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