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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. mark — a grade
  3. craft — a skill
  4. spell — magic
  5. wound — an injury
  6. net — in sport
  7. spell — letters
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — boats
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. rule — a law
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. mark — a trace
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wound — an injury
  17. net — for catching
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pit — in a race
  20. net — after costs
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. rule — government

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