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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bat — the animal
  3. net — in sport
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. net — after costs
  13. craft — a skill
  14. plane — a tool
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. row — a line
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. pit — in a race
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. row — to paddle
  22. net — for catching
  23. pit — a hole
  24. hide — animal skin

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