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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. vault — a safe
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. hand — in cards
  8. clip — a video
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. saw — the tool
  11. clip — for paper
  12. firm — a company
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. hand — help
  17. craft — a skill
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. craft — boats
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. firm — decided
  23. saw — the tool
  24. clip — to cut

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