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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 · march · temple · patient · hand · bat · charge · suit

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. suit — to fit
  3. hand — in cards
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. sharp — clever
  6. charge — electricity
  7. bat — the animal
  8. march — the month
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. march — the month
  14. hand — help
  15. march — music
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. suit — in cards
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — in control
  22. suit — clothes
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. temple — side of the head

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