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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: lean · tear · racket · court · fork · mark · dip · craft

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. craft — a skill
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. fork — in a road
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — thin
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. tear — to rip
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. mark — a trace
  14. court — for sport
  15. court — of law
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. court — of a king
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. dip — to sink
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. mark — a grade

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