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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 · stand · chip · row · fork · sharp · perch · bat

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. row — to paddle
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chip — for betting
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. row — a line
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. craft — boats
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. chip — to eat
  18. perch — the fish
  19. craft — a skill
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. perch — for a bird

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