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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. file — a document
  6. rock — music
  7. face — to point toward
  8. rock — a stone
  9. file — a line of people
  10. cap — a lid
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. face — part of the head
  15. cap — of ice
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stem — to come from
  20. face — to confront
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. craft — boats
  23. file — a tool
  24. cap — a hat

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