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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 120 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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. key — for a lock
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. fine — high quality
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. craft — a skill
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wind — moving air
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. key — the most important part
  18. craft — boats
  19. key — in music
  20. fine — all right
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fork — in a road

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