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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 · wake · perch · face · last · bulb · rash · hand

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bulb — for light
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — help
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. rash — a series
  7. face — to point toward
  8. bulb — for light
  9. face — to confront
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. hand — in cards
  13. last — final
  14. rash — hasty
  15. face — part of the head
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. last — to go on
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. craft — a skill
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. perch — the fish
  23. wake — a trail
  24. last — finally

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