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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 116 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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. craft — a skill
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. chip — for betting
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. craft — boats
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. cold — an illness
  9. chip — to eat
  10. saw — the tool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cold — not warm
  14. last — finally
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. tear — to rip
  20. rash — hasty
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — final
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. tear — from crying

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