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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 116 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 speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. craft — boats
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. scale — in music
  5. root — the cause
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. root — of a plant
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. field — farmland
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. fork — in a road
  13. field — a subject
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. craft — a skill
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. field — for sport
  22. root — of a word
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — a garden 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