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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · cell · straw · wake · firm · cap

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. firm — steady
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cap — of ice
  5. firm — a company
  6. firm — decided
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. craft — boats
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. wake — a trail
  14. cap — a hat
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cap — a lid
  18. craft — a skill

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