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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. drill — army training
  5. bank — for money
  6. drill — the tool
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. march — music
  9. degree — temperature
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bank — of a river
  13. degree — an amount
  14. chest — a box
  15. bank — for money
  16. craft — a skill
  17. stem — to come from
  18. drill — a practice
  19. chest — of your body
  20. degree — from a university
  21. chest — of your body
  22. march — the month
  23. march — the month
  24. lie — to recline

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