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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. court — for sport
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. object — to protest
  5. craft — a skill
  6. object — an aim
  7. hand — help
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. court — of law
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. court — of a king
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. degree — an amount
  15. hand — in cards
  16. degree — temperature
  17. roll — a cake
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. lie — to recline
  20. degree — from a university
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. object — a thing
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a list

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