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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 116 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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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 · bowl · bank · hand · drill · tear · mark · snap

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. hand — help
  3. bank — for money
  4. drill — a practice
  5. bank — for money
  6. mark — a grade
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bank — of a river
  9. mark — a trace
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. drill — army training
  14. hand — in cards
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. tear — to rip
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. tear — from crying

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