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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: cold · scale · craft · deal · fork · lean · nail · chair

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. scale — size or range
  3. cold — not warm
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. craft — boats
  6. lean — thin
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. lean — to bend
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. chair — a leader
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. cold — an illness
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. craft — a skill
  18. scale — in music
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. fork — in a road
  24. deal — to handle

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