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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. content — the amount
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. kick — in football
  8. tear — from crying
  9. craft — a skill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. current — happening now
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. tear — from crying
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. current — of water
  18. sharp — clever
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. tear — to rip
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. current — electric
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. content — happy

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