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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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468
Word bank
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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. craft — a skill
  3. craft — boats
  4. scale — size or range
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. rash — hasty
  10. game — wild animals
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. game — a match
  13. land — a country
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. scale — in music
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. rash — a series
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. kick — in football
  21. land — ground
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. craft — a handicraft
  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