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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. drill — a practice
  3. land — ground
  4. sharp — clever
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. land — a country
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. craft — boats
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. key — for a lock
  14. kid — to tease
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. drill — the tool
  18. perch — the fish
  19. craft — a skill
  20. drill — army training
  21. key — the most important part
  22. kid — child
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. key — in music

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