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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 116 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. spell — letters
  3. current — happening now
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — boats
  6. scale — in music
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. current — of water
  9. file — a line of people
  10. scale — size or range
  11. current — electric
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. spell — magic
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — completely
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — a trail
  19. file — a tool
  20. spell — a short time
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. file — a document
  24. fan — to cool the air

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