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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a skill
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. current — happening now
  5. present — a gift
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. spring — of water
  8. present — the time now
  9. current — of water
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. spring — the season
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. spring — a coil
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. net — in sport
  18. present — there
  19. band — a ring
  20. pitch — completely
  21. current — electric
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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