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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. row — to paddle
  4. last — finally
  5. mate — a partner
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. mate — to breed
  8. last — to go on
  9. mate — a friend
  10. last — final
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. craft — a skill
  15. row — a line
  16. foot — a measure
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. cell — in biology
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cell — a phone

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