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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. shower — rain
  4. plane — a tool
  5. court — of law
  6. race — humankind
  7. degree — temperature
  8. court — for sport
  9. craft — boats
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — an amount
  15. land — a country
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. craft — a skill
  20. court — of a king
  21. shower — to wash
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. craft — a handicraft

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