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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. spell — magic
  3. craft — a skill
  4. spell — a short time
  5. current — electric
  6. track — a path
  7. lean — to bend
  8. season — of the year
  9. last — final
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. spell — letters
  13. craft — boats
  14. current — happening now
  15. season — in sport
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a song
  18. last — to go on
  19. perch — the fish
  20. last — finally
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. current — of water
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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