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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 120 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: hand · tear · scale · craft · file · bulb · stand · bark

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. scale — size or range
  4. file — a document
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — in cards
  11. scale — in music
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. file — a line of people
  14. stand — to bear
  15. file — a tool
  16. craft — a skill
  17. bulb — for light
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. tear — from crying
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. bulb — for light

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