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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 120 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 spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. saw — the tool
  3. cold — not warm
  4. field — for sport
  5. pop — to visit
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. current — happening now
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cold — an illness
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. lean — thin
  12. pop — music
  13. current — of water
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. current — electric
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. pop — soda
  19. game — a match
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — to bend
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — wild animals
  24. craft — boats

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