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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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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: craft · chair · wind · toast · bowl · march · firm · hand

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. toast — bread
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. march — the month
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. chair — a leader
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. firm — a company
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. craft — a skill
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. march — music
  14. wind — moving air
  15. hand — help
  16. craft — boats
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. firm — decided
  20. march — the month
  21. wind — moving air
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. craft — a handicraft

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