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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: bay · squash · tear · arm · fan · present · sharp · degree

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. squash — to crush
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. sharp — clever
  11. degree — an amount
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. present — there
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. present — the time now
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. degree — from a university
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. degree — temperature
  24. present — a gift

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