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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. stock — shares
  3. craft — a skill
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. stock — goods
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. prune — to trim
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. craft — boats
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. prune — to trim
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. sharp — clever
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. prune — the fruit

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