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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: lean · nail · jam · bark · sharp · bat · racket · spring

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. spring — of water
  8. bat — the animal
  9. sharp — clever
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — a coil
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. lean — to bend
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. lean — thin
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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