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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. branch — a division
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. craft — boats
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. mark — a trace
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. last — final
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. prune — to trim
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. mark — a grade
  19. last — finally
  20. scale — size or range
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. scale — in music
  24. last — to go on

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