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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: march · craft · cold · fall · stick · mine · root · bay

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. craft — boats
  8. fall — to drop
  9. root — the cause
  10. mine — for digging
  11. march — music
  12. cold — not warm
  13. root — of a plant
  14. march — the month
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. root — of a word
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. craft — a skill
  20. fall — to drop
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fall — the season
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. march — the month

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