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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. bound — tied together
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. bound — obliged
  6. row — a line
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. row — to paddle
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. net — in sport
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. clip — to cut
  13. present — the time now
  14. net — after costs
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. craft — a skill
  18. present — there
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. net — for catching
  21. present — a gift
  22. bound — certain
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — a video

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