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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: file · tear · squash · firm · mate · craft

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. squash — the sport
  3. craft — a skill
  4. file — a tool
  5. firm — a company
  6. firm — decided
  7. mate — a friend
  8. file — a document
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. mate — a partner
  11. firm — steady
  12. file — a line of people
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. squash — to crush
  17. mate — to breed
  18. tear — from crying

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