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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. game — a match
  3. clip — to cut
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. clip — for paper
  8. shower — to wash
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a friend
  11. craft — boats
  12. fine — all right
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. fine — high quality
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. shower — rain
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. clip — a video
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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