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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 120 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. pop — to visit
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. tear — from crying
  6. field — for sport
  7. pop — music
  8. pop — soda
  9. charge — electricity
  10. kid — to tease
  11. degree — temperature
  12. field — a subject
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. degree — an amount
  15. tear — to rip
  16. charge — a price
  17. charge — in control
  18. kid — child
  19. tear — from crying
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. degree — from a university
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. field — farmland
  24. craft — boats

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