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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 116 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. ball — a great time
  5. rest — a break
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mate — to breed
  10. rest — what's left
  11. spell — a short time
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. mate — a partner
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mate — a friend
  17. craft — a skill
  18. ball — a dance
  19. spell — letters
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rest — what's left
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. spell — magic

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