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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. race — a contest
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. swing — in golf
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — music
  8. file — a tool
  9. content — happy
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. file — a document
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. file — a line of people
  15. content — the amount
  16. race — humankind
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — in cards
  22. pass — a permit
  23. craft — boats
  24. race — the arms race

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