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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: wake · staff · cap · march · court · roll · sharp · bat

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. cap — a lid
  4. roll — a list
  5. court — of law
  6. march — the month
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — clever
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. staff — employees
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — music
  14. court — of a king
  15. bat — the animal
  16. staff — employees
  17. march — the month
  18. cap — a hat
  19. wake — a trail
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. court — for sport
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. roll — a cake
  24. staff — a stick

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