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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 120 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. staff — a stick
  3. track — a path
  4. fall — the season
  5. kid — child
  6. craft — boats
  7. fall — to drop
  8. spell — a short time
  9. rock — music
  10. staff — employees
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. march — the month
  13. kid — to tease
  14. march — the month
  15. rock — a stone
  16. track — a song
  17. march — music
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. staff — employees
  20. track — to keep track
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. spell — magic
  23. fall — to drop
  24. spell — letters

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