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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 116 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: bulb · saw · stem · sharp · spring · drill · craft · straw

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. drill — the tool
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bulb — for light
  6. drill — a practice
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. craft — a skill
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bulb — for light
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. stem — to come from
  14. spring — the season
  15. craft — boats
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. saw — the tool
  19. drill — army training
  20. spring — of water
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. spring — a coil

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