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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. tear — from crying
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. craft — boats
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. craft — a skill
  8. branch — a division
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wound — an injury
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — in a road
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tear — from crying
  24. craft — a handicraft

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