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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bear — the animal
  6. fine — all right
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — letters
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. kid — to tease
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. sharp — clever
  15. kid — child
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. craft — boats
  18. craft — a skill
  19. spell — magic
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. bear — the animal
  24. game — a match

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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