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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: craft · season · staff · spell · last · fork · saw · field

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. craft — boats
  3. saw — the tool
  4. staff — employees
  5. season — in sport
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. craft — a skill
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. last — to go on
  11. field — for sport
  12. staff — employees
  13. field — farmland
  14. fork — in a road
  15. spell — letters
  16. saw — the tool
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. field — a subject
  19. spell — magic
  20. staff — a stick
  21. last — finally
  22. last — final
  23. spell — a short time
  24. season — of the year

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