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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 120 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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. craft — boats
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. last — final
  8. bark — to shout
  9. rash — a series
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rash — hasty
  12. last — to go on
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. lie — to recline
  18. craft — a skill
  19. last — finally
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bat — the animal

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