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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: hide · craft · wound · spell · bay · tear · leaves · straw

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. spell — letters
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — to rip
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. craft — boats
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. craft — a skill
  20. tear — from crying
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wound — an injury
  23. spell — magic
  24. wound — an injury

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