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

Word bank: perch · stick · patient · row · sharp · cold · craft · fork

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. row — to paddle
  3. fork — in a road
  4. craft — boats
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cold — not warm
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. craft — a skill
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cold — an illness
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. row — a line
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. sharp — clever
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. perch — the fish
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. cold — the Cold War

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