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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. craft — a skill
  4. craft — boats
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bass — the fish
  10. drill — army training
  11. perch — the fish
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bark — to shout
  15. mine — for digging
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. drill — the tool
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. drill — a practice
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. craft — a handicraft

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