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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. craft — a skill
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. rock — music
  5. rock — a stone
  6. swing — music
  7. craft — boats
  8. tear — to rip
  9. prune — to trim
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. swing — in golf
  13. prune — to trim
  14. shower — to wash
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. shower — rain
  22. swing — to play on
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. sharp — clever

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