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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. craft — boats
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. march — music
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. fork — in a road
  8. spell — a short time
  9. march — the month
  10. foot — a measure
  11. march — the month
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. spell — letters
  14. wind — moving air
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. craft — a skill
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — farmland
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. field — for sport
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spell — magic
  24. safe — out of danger

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