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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. band — a music group
  3. cell — in biology
  4. staff — employees
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. staff — a stick
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bound — tied together
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. bound — obliged
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. staff — employees
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. bound — certain
  21. band — a ring
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. craft — boats
  24. dip — to sink

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