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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. file — a line of people
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. content — the amount
  8. face — to confront
  9. content — happy
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. face — part of the head
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. file — a document
  18. file — a tool
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. rule — a law
  21. craft — boats
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. rule — government
  24. face — to point toward

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