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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. court — of law
  4. root — of a plant
  5. craft — a skill
  6. root — of a word
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. sharp — clever
  9. court — for sport
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cell — in biology
  13. craft — boats
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. last — to go on
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. last — finally
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a line
  22. root — the cause
  23. court — of a king
  24. last — final

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