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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 116 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: perch · season · fan · spring · patient · straw · last · craft

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. season — of the year
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. last — finally
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. craft — a skill
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. spring — the season
  12. craft — boats
  13. spring — of water
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. season — in sport
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. perch — the fish
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. spring — a coil
  23. last — final
  24. last — to go on

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