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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. craft — boats
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. swing — music
  12. chest — of your body
  13. court — of a king
  14. bark — to shout
  15. court — for sport
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. court — of law
  18. chest — a box
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. swing — in golf
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. stock — goods
  23. swing — to play on
  24. stock — shares

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