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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.

Make a worksheet

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: lean · file · ground · sharp · wind · object · chip · squash

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. lean — thin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. squash — the sport
  5. object — an aim
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. squash — to crush
  9. lean — to bend
  10. file — a document
  11. chip — to eat
  12. ground — a position
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. ground — the earth
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. wind — moving air
  17. file — a tool
  18. object — to protest
  19. file — a line of people
  20. object — a thing
  21. sharp — clever
  22. chip — for betting
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. squash — the vegetable

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