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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. rock — music
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. land — ground
  6. land — a country
  7. toast — bread
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. land — to come down
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. prune — to trim
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. shower — rain
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. rock — a stone
  22. shower — to wash
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. foot — a measure

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