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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. craft — a skill
  3. field — a subject
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. perch — the fish
  6. rest — what's left
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. craft — boats
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. ball — a dance
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. rest — a break
  17. field — farmland
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. ball — a great time
  23. field — for sport
  24. sharp — clever

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