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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. current — happening now
  5. race — a contest
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. game — wild animals
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. current — electric
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. craft — boats
  14. race — the arms race
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. wound — an injury
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. kick — in football
  22. game — a match
  23. race — humankind
  24. current — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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