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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bore — to tire
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ground — a position
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. game — wild animals
  14. land — a country
  15. land — ground
  16. bore — to drill
  17. game — a match
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. land — to come down
  23. ground — crushed
  24. game — a kind of play

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