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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. spell — letters
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. wound — an injury
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. craft — a skill
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spell — magic
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. craft — boats
  17. fork — in a road
  18. spell — a short time

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