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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. spell — magic
  4. hand — help
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. craft — a skill
  8. spell — letters
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. spell — a short time
  11. deal — to handle
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. hand — in cards
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. straw — a straw man

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