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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: straw · lean · saw · content · craft · date · field · rash

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. content — the amount
  3. rash — hasty
  4. date — the fruit
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. craft — boats
  10. field — a subject
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. content — happy
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. saw — the tool
  15. craft — a skill
  16. field — for sport
  17. field — farmland
  18. saw — the tool
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. rash — a series
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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