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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 124 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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. last — to go on
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. wind — moving air
  5. last — final
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fine — high quality
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. last — finally
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. fine — all right
  12. fork — in a road
  13. court — for sport
  14. craft — a skill
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. wind — moving air
  19. craft — boats
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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