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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 120 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. fall — the season
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. craft — boats
  6. foot — a measure
  7. plane — a tool
  8. fall — to drop
  9. craft — a skill
  10. fall — to drop
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rash — hasty
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. rash — a series
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. rash — on the skin

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