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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. march — the month
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. craft — a skill
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. craft — boats
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. branch — a division
  12. file — a line of people
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. march — music
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. march — the month
  20. file — a tool
  21. saw — the tool
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. file — a document

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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