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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. dip — to sink
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. rule — a law
  5. bound — obliged
  6. craft — boats
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. rule — government
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. drill — army training
  15. rush — hurry
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bound — tied together
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. drill — the tool
  22. drill — a practice
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. bound — certain

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