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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — of the year
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. march — the month
  7. wake — a trail
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. wound — an injury
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. wound — an injury
  14. march — music
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. chair — a leader
  17. scale — in music
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. scale — size or range
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. craft — a skill
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. march — the month

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