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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  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. wind — moving air
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. craft — a skill
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. scale — in music
  8. craft — boats
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. roll — a list
  12. sharp — clever
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. roll — a cake
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. scale — size or range
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wind — moving air
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. patient — a sick person
  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