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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. craft — a skill
  3. current — electric
  4. file — a line of people
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. current — of water
  7. court — of law
  8. march — music
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spring — a coil
  11. court — of a king
  12. march — the month
  13. court — for sport
  14. file — a tool
  15. current — happening now
  16. spring — the season
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. spell — magic
  20. spring — of water
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. march — the month
  23. craft — boats
  24. file — a document

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