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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. bass — the fish
  4. roll — a cake
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. court — of a king
  8. mine — for digging
  9. ball — a dance
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. bat — the animal
  13. court — for sport
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. craft — boats
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. pound — a weight
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. roll — a list
  22. bass — low music
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. court — of law

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