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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  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. craft — a handicraft
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. craft — boats
  4. spell — magic
  5. current — happening now
  6. last — to go on
  7. current — electric
  8. last — finally
  9. current — of water
  10. track — a song
  11. craft — a skill
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. track — a path
  14. last — final
  15. spell — letters
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. track — to keep track
  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