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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: content · straw · craft · hand · bulb · row · drill · lean

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. craft — boats
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. row — to paddle
  6. drill — a practice
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. row — a line
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. hand — in cards
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bulb — for light
  13. craft — a skill
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — help
  16. lean — thin
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. drill — the tool
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. bulb — for light
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. drill — army training
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. row — a quarrel

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