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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: rash · spring · sharp · can · toast · hand · tear · chair

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. chair — a leader
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rash — a series
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — the season
  13. can — a tin
  14. rash — hasty
  15. can — a tin
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. spring — of water
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. can — to be able to
  21. hand — in cards
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. toast — bread

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