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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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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 · present · wound · spell · shower · wind · bass · stem

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wind — moving air
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. shower — rain
  7. bass — the fish
  8. present — there
  9. wind — moving air
  10. spell — letters
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. present — a gift
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. present — the time now
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. stem — to come from
  24. craft — a skill

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