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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. craft — boats
  3. deal — to handle
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. firm — a company
  6. firm — steady
  7. last — finally
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. roll — a cake
  11. firm — decided
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. last — to go on
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. last — final
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wound — an injury
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. roll — a list
  22. craft — a skill
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. roll — on a roll

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