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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. craft — boats
  4. present — there
  5. pop — to visit
  6. present — a gift
  7. wake — a trail
  8. clip — to cut
  9. rash — hasty
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. deal — to handle
  13. clip — for paper
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. pop — music
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. rash — a series
  18. board — to get on
  19. present — the time now
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. board — a committee
  22. clip — a video
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — a skill

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