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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. present — a gift
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. craft — a skill
  6. field — for sport
  7. craft — boats
  8. present — there
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. present — the time now
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. pit — a hole
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. field — farmland
  18. saw — the tool
  19. vault — a safe
  20. ground — a position
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. field — a subject
  24. pit — in a race

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