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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. pit — a hole
  3. craft — boats
  4. season — in sport
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bat — the animal
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. pitch — completely
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. season — of the year
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. pit — in a race
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. craft — a skill
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. wound — an injury
  21. foot — a measure
  22. wound — an injury
  23. tube — a container
  24. bat — for baseball

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