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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a dance
  3. season — in sport
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. chair — a leader
  7. craft — boats
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. tear — to rip
  10. rush — hurry
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. craft — a skill
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. season — of the year
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. kid — child
  21. kid — to tease
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. ball — a round shape

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