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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: net · tube · season · ground · foot · craft · wake · clip

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. craft — boats
  3. tube — a container
  4. wake — a trail
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. ground — the earth
  7. clip — for paper
  8. season — in sport
  9. tube — the underground
  10. ground — a position
  11. net — for catching
  12. foot — a measure
  13. season — of the year
  14. clip — to cut
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. net — after costs
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. craft — a skill
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. clip — a video
  23. net — in sport
  24. ground — crushed

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