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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 124 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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. face — to point toward
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. face — to confront
  8. face — part of the head
  9. clip — a video
  10. craft — a skill
  11. key — the most important part
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. key — for a lock
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. last — final
  18. last — to go on
  19. clip — to cut
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. key — in music
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. clip — for paper
  24. last — finally

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