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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  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. craft — boats
  2. sharp — clever
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. squash — to crush
  7. lean — thin
  8. craft — a skill
  9. lean — to bend
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. fine — high quality
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. race — a contest
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wound — an injury
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. squash — the sport
  20. race — humankind
  21. fine — all right
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. race — the arms race
  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