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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. last — final
  3. file — a line of people
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. file — a tool
  6. plane — a tool
  7. pit — in a race
  8. land — a country
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. last — to go on
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. last — finally
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. pound — a weight
  18. craft — a skill
  19. land — ground
  20. file — a document
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. land — to come down

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