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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. craft — a skill
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. chest — of your body
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. court — of a king
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. chest — a box
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. chest — of your body
  12. court — for sport
  13. stand — to bear
  14. branch — a division
  15. court — of law
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. craft — boats

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