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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 116 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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. craft — a skill
  3. lean — to bend
  4. net — after costs
  5. row — a line
  6. craft — boats
  7. row — to paddle
  8. sharp — clever
  9. last — to go on
  10. net — in sport
  11. staff — employees
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. last — final
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. net — for catching
  21. lean — thin
  22. staff — a stick
  23. last — finally
  24. staff — employees

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