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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. craft — boats
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. row — to paddle
  11. tube — a container
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. row — a line
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. can — a tin
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. craft — a skill
  21. can — a tin
  22. fork — in a road
  23. can — to be able to
  24. cold — the Cold War

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