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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cap — a lid
  3. track — a song
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. wound — an injury
  7. cap — of ice
  8. craft — a skill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. ball — a dance
  11. track — a path
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. craft — boats
  15. stem — to come from
  16. cap — a hat
  17. wound — an injury
  18. rash — a series
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. ball — a great time
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. track — to keep track
  23. hand — in cards
  24. rash — on the skin

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