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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. current — happening now
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. craft — boats
  6. row — a line
  7. craft — a skill
  8. sharp — clever
  9. mug — a face
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. shower — to wash
  13. mug — to rob
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. current — of water
  17. lie — to recline
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. shower — rain
  20. mug — a cup
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. current — electric
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. row — to paddle

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