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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. row — a line
  3. craft — a skill
  4. craft — boats
  5. cap — a lid
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. charge — in control
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. mate — a partner
  12. charge — a price
  13. mate — to breed
  14. row — to paddle
  15. mate — a friend
  16. cap — a hat
  17. squash — to crush
  18. kid — to tease
  19. charge — electricity
  20. key — for a lock
  21. key — in music
  22. key — the most important part
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. cap — of ice

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