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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 116 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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. craft — boats
  4. scale — in music
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. spring — of water
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. kid — child
  15. craft — a skill
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. kid — to tease
  18. scale — size or range
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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