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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.

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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: rest · craft · plane · perch · branch · net · sharp · file

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. net — after costs
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — in sport
  6. rest — what's left
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. branch — a division
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — a skill
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a document
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. perch — the fish
  16. rest — what's left
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. file — a line of people
  21. plane — a tool
  22. rest — a break
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. sharp — clever

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