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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 116 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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. bat — the animal
  4. spell — letters
  5. cell — a phone
  6. craft — boats
  7. board — a committee
  8. fork — in a road
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — in biology
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. spell — a short time
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. craft — a skill
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. board — to get on
  23. spell — magic
  24. mine — for digging

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