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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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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. deal — to handle
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — of your body
  8. court — of a king
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — boats
  12. cold — not warm
  13. firm — a company
  14. firm — decided
  15. cold — an illness
  16. firm — steady
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. deal — an agreement

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