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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 120 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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — music
  3. craft — boats
  4. dip — to sink
  5. craft — a skill
  6. spell — letters
  7. bore — to tire
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. object — to protest
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. march — the month
  14. lie — to recline
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bore — to drill
  17. row — a line
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. object — an aim
  20. spell — magic
  21. object — a thing
  22. row — to paddle
  23. spell — a short time
  24. craft — a handicraft

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