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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. craft — boats
  4. key — the most important part
  5. field — for sport
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. key — for a lock
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. present — there
  10. rule — a law
  11. rule — government
  12. present — a gift
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. field — farmland
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. fork — in a road
  18. present — the time now
  19. branch — a division
  20. field — a subject
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. key — in music
  23. craft — a skill
  24. straw — a straw man

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