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

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. swing — music
  3. toast — bread
  4. craft — a skill
  5. field — a subject
  6. cold — not warm
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. field — farmland
  9. field — for sport
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. swing — to play on
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. wound — an injury
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. wound — an injury
  20. craft — boats
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cold — an illness
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. deal — to handle

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