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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. craft — a skill
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chip — for betting
  7. file — a tool
  8. file — a document
  9. chip — to eat
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. bear — the animal
  14. file — a line of people
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. bear — the animal
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. craft — boats
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. pitch — completely
  24. rock — a stone

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