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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. spell — a short time
  7. rash — a series
  8. spell — letters
  9. cell — a phone
  10. row — to paddle
  11. rash — hasty
  12. craft — boats
  13. suit — clothes
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. cell — in biology
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. spell — magic
  18. suit — in cards
  19. shower — rain
  20. chip — for betting
  21. craft — a skill
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. row — a line
  24. chip — to eat

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