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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. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. craft — boats
  5. season — in sport
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cap — a lid
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. season — of the year
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — of ice
  18. race — the arms race
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. kid — child
  21. race — a contest
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. craft — a skill
  24. race — humankind

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