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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 120 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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. mate — a partner
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. lean — thin
  5. mate — to breed
  6. craft — boats
  7. object — an aim
  8. lean — to bend
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. row — a line
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wound — an injury
  14. object — a thing
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. object — to protest
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mate — a friend
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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