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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. current — happening now
  3. court — for sport
  4. craft — boats
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. court — of law
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. spring — a coil
  11. current — of water
  12. sharp — clever
  13. band — a music group
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. court — of a king
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. spring — of water
  18. fork — in a road
  19. craft — a skill
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. spring — the season
  22. current — electric
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. band — a ring

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