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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  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. craft — a skill
  2. fine — high quality
  3. row — to paddle
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. lean — thin
  6. degree — from a university
  7. row — a line
  8. fine — all right
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. degree — temperature
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bark — to shout
  15. craft — boats
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pit — a hole
  20. lean — to bend
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. degree — an amount
  23. straw — a straw man
  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