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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 120 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: chip · craft · row · temple · content · safe · file · mate

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. chip — for betting
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — a line
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. content — happy
  9. chip — to eat
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — a partner
  15. file — a line of people
  16. content — the amount
  17. file — a tool
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. file — a document
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. row — to paddle
  24. chip — in a computer

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