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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. mine — for digging
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. perch — the fish
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. craft — a skill
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. rock — music
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. craft — boats
  12. bat — the animal
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. rock — a stone
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bat — for baseball

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