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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: sharp · pit · cell · mouse · spell · clip · lean · date

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. clip — to cut
  6. cell — a phone
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — a short time
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. clip — a video
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. pit — a hole
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. date — the fruit
  18. cell — in biology
  19. clip — for paper
  20. spell — letters
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. lean — to bend
  23. pit — in a race
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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