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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. craft — a skill
  11. degree — an amount
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. bark — to shout
  15. dip — to sink
  16. lie — to recline
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. degree — temperature
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. deal — to handle

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