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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. squash — the sport
  3. craft — a skill
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. chest — of your body
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. plane — a tool
  8. chest — of your body
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. wound — an injury
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bass — low music
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. craft — boats
  20. chest — a box
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. bass — the fish

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