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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. cap — of ice
  3. rock — music
  4. kid — child
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. rock — a stone
  7. cap — a hat
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. plane — a tool
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. kid — to tease
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. cap — a lid
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a skill
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. bore — to drill
  20. squash — to crush
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bore — to tire
  24. rock — to move gently

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