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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: sharp · firm · mug · rest · field · dip · face · clip

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. field — farmland
  3. clip — for paper
  4. field — for sport
  5. firm — decided
  6. sharp — clever
  7. mug — a face
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. mug — to rob
  12. clip — to cut
  13. dip — to sink
  14. field — a subject
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — part of the head
  17. firm — steady
  18. mug — a cup
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. firm — a company
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. face — to point toward
  23. clip — a video
  24. sharp — with an edge

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