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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: bore · clip · firm · craft · bay · wake · chair · row

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  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. chair — a leader
  3. wake — a trail
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bore — to tire
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. firm — a company
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. row — a line
  15. clip — a video
  16. craft — boats
  17. bore — to drill
  18. row — to paddle
  19. firm — decided
  20. clip — for paper
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. craft — a skill
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  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