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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. foot — a measure
  3. spell — letters
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to click
  6. craft — boats
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. sharp — clever
  12. branch — a division
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. shower — rain
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. spell — a short time
  19. shower — to wash
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. craft — a skill
  23. spell — magic
  24. pass — a permit

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