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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. wake — a trail
  5. mate — a friend
  6. craft — boats
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. capital — money
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. craft — a skill
  14. capital — a city
  15. chest — of your body
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mate — a partner
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. roll — a list
  24. wake — before a funeral

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