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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: craft · bark · deal · pass · club · last · fall · field

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. craft — boats
  3. last — final
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. fall — to drop
  7. field — farmland
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. last — finally
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. club — a group
  12. pass — a permit
  13. club — for dancing
  14. field — a subject
  15. fall — to drop
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. field — for sport
  18. last — to go on
  19. craft — a skill
  20. deal — to handle
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. fall — the season
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. club — for golf

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