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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 120 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. key — for a lock
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. snap — to click
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a skill
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wound — an injury
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. file — a document
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wound — an injury
  18. file — a tool
  19. perch — the fish
  20. ground — the earth
  21. key — in music
  22. ground — a position
  23. key — the most important part
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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