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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wound — an injury
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. wound — an injury
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. track — to keep track
  10. stock — goods
  11. chest — a box
  12. track — a song
  13. chest — of your body
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. track — a path
  18. plane — a tool
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. stock — shares
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. craft — a skill

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