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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — a subject
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. rest — what's left
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — army training
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bear — the animal
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. rest — what's left
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — farmland
  18. drill — a practice
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. rest — a break
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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