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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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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 · chest · net · fork · tear · perch · suit · content

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. chest — a box
  3. perch — the fish
  4. content — happy
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. suit — in cards
  10. chest — of your body
  11. tear — from crying
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. content — the amount
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. suit — to fit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. fork — in a road
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. tear — to rip
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tear — from crying
  23. suit — clothes
  24. net — for catching

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