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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. file — a tool
  3. game — wild animals
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. perch — the fish
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. can — to be able to
  11. craft — a skill
  12. row — to paddle
  13. craft — boats
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a document
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. can — a tin
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. game — a match
  21. file — a line of people
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. can — a tin
  24. game — a kind of play

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