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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. squash — the sport
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. field — farmland
  7. kid — to tease
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. track — a path
  10. bass — low music
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. craft — a skill
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. craft — boats
  19. field — for sport
  20. squash — to crush
  21. kid — child
  22. track — to keep track
  23. field — a subject
  24. track — a song

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