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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. craft — a skill
  4. chip — to eat
  5. last — final
  6. craft — boats
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — a video
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. chip — for betting
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. clip — to cut
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wax — to grow
  20. last — finally
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. last — to go on

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