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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. clip — to cut
  7. craft — a skill
  8. clip — for paper
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. craft — boats
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. cold — an illness
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. plane — a tool
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — a video
  24. trunk — of a car

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