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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. track — a song
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wake — a trail
  7. root — of a word
  8. current — happening now
  9. track — to keep track
  10. track — a path
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. current — electric
  13. wound — an injury
  14. current — of water
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. root — of a plant
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. craft — a skill
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. root — the cause
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. nail — on a finger

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