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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. craft — a skill
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. mine — for digging
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — in sport
  9. cold — an illness
  10. season — of the year
  11. fork — in a road
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. net — for catching
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. net — after costs
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. cold — not warm
  21. bat — the animal
  22. net — in sport
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. craft — boats

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