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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 120 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: chest · stick · fan · pitcher · sharp · object · lean · bulb

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. object — an aim
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. object — to protest
  6. lean — thin
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. chest — of your body
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. lean — to bend
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. sharp — clever
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chest — of your body
  17. object — a thing
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  24. chest — a box

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