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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. craft — a skill
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. land — ground
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bark — to shout
  10. plane — a tool
  11. land — to come down
  12. spring — of water
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. spring — the season
  16. craft — boats
  17. spring — a coil
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — a phone
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. cell — in biology
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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