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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. fine — all right
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. fine — high quality
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. march — music
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — to recline
  15. craft — boats
  16. game — wild animals
  17. game — a match
  18. game — a kind of play

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