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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: wind · craft · last · stem · toast · field · bore · pitcher

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. last — to go on
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. last — final
  6. bore — to drill
  7. toast — bread
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. craft — a skill
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. wind — moving air
  14. field — for sport
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. last — finally
  20. field — a subject
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bore — to tire
  24. field — farmland

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