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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. game — wild animals
  7. root — the cause
  8. craft — a skill
  9. row — to paddle
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. root — of a word
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. chair — a leader
  14. row — a line
  15. game — a match
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. root — of a plant
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. cell — in biology
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cell — a phone
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. wind — to turn a key

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