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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bore — to tire
  3. lean — to bend
  4. bore — to drill
  5. charge — a price
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a document
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. craft — a skill
  13. stem — to come from
  14. lean — thin
  15. charge — in control
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. charge — electricity
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. file — a tool
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. craft — a handicraft

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