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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 spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. date — the fruit
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wind — moving air
  5. field — farmland
  6. mine — for digging
  7. field — for sport
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wind — moving air
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. fall — the season
  14. firm — steady
  15. craft — boats
  16. firm — decided
  17. track — a song
  18. track — a path
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. fall — to drop
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. field — a subject
  23. firm — a company
  24. mine — belonging to me

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