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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. shower — to wash
  3. craft — boats
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. craft — a skill
  6. saw — the tool
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. hand — help
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. pop — soda
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. shower — rain
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bark — to shout
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. pop — to visit
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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