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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 120 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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. object — an aim
  6. tear — from crying
  7. craft — boats
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. object — a thing
  11. file — a document
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. tear — to rip
  16. plane — a tool
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mine — for digging
  20. season — in sport
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. craft — a skill
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a line of people

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