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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 120 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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bank — for money
  4. degree — an amount
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. wind — moving air
  7. pitch — completely
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. craft — a skill
  10. wind — moving air
  11. degree — from a university
  12. march — the month
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bank — for money
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. march — music
  22. craft — boats
  23. bank — of a river
  24. march — the month

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