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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: dip · clip · last · sharp · cold · roll · foot · cap

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. clip — for paper
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to sink
  6. foot — a measure
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cold — not warm
  9. clip — a video
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cap — of ice
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. last — final
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. roll — a cake
  20. cold — an illness
  21. roll — a list
  22. last — finally
  23. cap — a hat
  24. sharp — exactly

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