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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stem — to come from
  3. club — for dancing
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. craft — a skill
  9. shower — to wash
  10. rest — what's left
  11. craft — boats
  12. fork — in a road
  13. spring — a coil
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — rain
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. spring — the season
  18. rest — what's left
  19. club — a group
  20. saw — the tool
  21. spring — of water
  22. club — for golf
  23. rest — a break
  24. fork — to eat with

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