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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. craft — a skill
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. craft — boats
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. cold — not warm
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. shower — to wash
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. shower — rain
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. branch — a division
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. racket — for tennis

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