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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. rush — hurry
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. net — after costs
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. race — the arms race
  9. craft — a skill
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — a safe
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. chip — to eat
  17. race — a contest
  18. chip — for betting
  19. net — in sport
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. net — for catching
  22. wind — moving air
  23. race — humankind
  24. wind — moving air

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