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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. row — a line
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. craft — boats
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — a practice
  11. tube — a container
  12. row — to paddle
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. wake — a trail
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. tube — the underground
  19. craft — a skill
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. march — music
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. drill — the tool
  24. row — a quarrel

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