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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. firm — decided
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. craft — boats
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. content — happy
  7. file — a document
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. firm — steady
  14. firm — a company
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a music group
  18. craft — a skill
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. file — a line of people
  21. saw — the tool
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. band — a ring
  24. file — a tool

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