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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. land — to come down
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. lean — thin
  5. wake — a trail
  6. drill — a practice
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. craft — a skill
  9. land — ground
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. march — the month
  12. march — music
  13. drill — the tool
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. drill — army training
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. land — a country
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. deal — to handle
  23. march — the month
  24. lean — to bend

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