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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. sharp — clever
  3. band — a music group
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. plane — a tool
  8. craft — boats
  9. charge — electricity
  10. band — a ring
  11. row — to paddle
  12. file — a document
  13. wind — moving air
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. row — a line
  19. wind — moving air
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a tool
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. charge — a price
  24. plane — an aircraft

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