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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. clip — a video
  3. craft — a skill
  4. clip — for paper
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. lie — to recline
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. date — the fruit
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. cold — not warm
  20. pass — a permit
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cold — an illness
  23. clip — to cut
  24. pass — to spend time

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