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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. present — a gift
  3. last — final
  4. club — for dancing
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. last — finally
  7. club — a group
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. clip — for paper
  10. last — to go on
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. dip — to sink
  14. clip — to cut
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. clip — a video
  17. craft — a skill
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — there
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. band — a music group
  22. band — a ring
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. club — for golf

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