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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. craft — boats
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. ball — a dance
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. kick — in football
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rash — hasty
  15. ball — a great time
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. date — the fruit
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. craft — a skill
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — a phone

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