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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. firm — a company
  3. craft — boats
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. board — to get on
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. firm — decided
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. board — a committee
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. firm — steady
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. craft — a skill
  24. ball — a dance

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