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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. craft — boats
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. mate — to breed
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. rash — a series
  7. craft — a skill
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. rash — hasty
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bass — low music
  13. rush — hurry
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. band — a music group
  17. mate — a partner
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. saw — the tool
  21. band — a ring
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. mate — a friend

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