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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. craft — boats
  3. pop — soda
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. ball — a great time
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. court — for sport
  8. craft — a skill
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pop — music
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. court — of law
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. wound — an injury
  16. court — of a king
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cold — an illness
  23. ball — a dance
  24. bowl — a dish

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