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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. craft — boats
  3. track — to keep track
  4. tear — to rip
  5. game — a match
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bound — obliged
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. scale — size or range
  10. track — a song
  11. track — a path
  12. game — wild animals
  13. bound — tied together
  14. spell — magic
  15. bound — certain
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. tear — from crying
  19. craft — a skill
  20. scale — in music
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — a short time
  23. tear — from crying
  24. game — a kind of play

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