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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — finally
  3. craft — boats
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. row — to paddle
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cell — a phone
  9. sharp — clever
  10. row — a line
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. can — a tin
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. last — to go on
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. craft — a skill
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. can — a tin
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. can — to be able to
  24. cell — in biology

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