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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. craft — a skill
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. rash — hasty
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rash — a series
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. sharp — clever
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. craft — boats
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. hand — in cards
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. hand — help
  24. bowl — a football final

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