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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. bass — the fish
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. deal — to handle
  9. bass — low music
  10. craft — a skill
  11. file — a line of people
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. shower — rain
  14. season — in sport
  15. clip — a video
  16. season — of the year
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. clip — for paper
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. clip — to cut
  22. shower — to wash
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. craft — boats

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