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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. net — after costs
  4. craft — boats
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. spring — a coil
  8. pound — a weight
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. clip — to cut
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. clip — a video
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. clip — for paper
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. net — in sport
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. net — for catching
  23. perch — the fish
  24. pound — for dogs

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