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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. saw — the tool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. drill — the tool
  8. bound — tied together
  9. craft — a skill
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bound — obliged
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. saw — the tool
  15. roll — a cake
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. drill — a practice
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. roll — a list
  21. bound — certain
  22. chest — a box
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. drill — army training

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