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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. object — to protest
  3. ground — crushed
  4. spring — of water
  5. object — a thing
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stand — to bear
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. file — a document
  10. spring — a coil
  11. fork — in a road
  12. file — a line of people
  13. craft — boats
  14. file — a tool
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. prune — to trim
  19. ground — a position
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. object — an aim
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. spring — the season
  24. stand — for spectators

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