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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chest · bowl · mark · craft · wound · spell · straw · saw

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spell — a short time
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. chest — a box
  7. spell — letters
  8. craft — boats
  9. wound — an injury
  10. saw — the tool
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mark — a trace
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. spell — magic
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mark — a grade
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. craft — a skill
  24. straw — a straw man

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