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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. cold — not warm
  5. branch — a division
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. land — a country
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. suit — to fit
  15. bound — obliged
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. bound — tied together
  18. craft — boats
  19. land — ground
  20. suit — in cards
  21. cold — an illness
  22. land — to come down
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bound — certain

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