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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 116 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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. field — farmland
  3. current — electric
  4. saw — the tool
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. wind — moving air
  7. row — to paddle
  8. wind — moving air
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. current — happening now
  11. craft — a skill
  12. mate — a partner
  13. craft — boats
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. mate — to breed
  16. saw — the tool
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. mate — a friend
  19. field — a subject
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. current — of water
  23. field — for sport
  24. calf — a young animal

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