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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: craft · perch · mine · bay · safe · clip · snap · branch

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. craft — a skill
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. clip — a video
  7. snap — to click
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. craft — boats
  11. clip — to cut
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. perch — the fish
  17. branch — a division
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. safe — a strongbox

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