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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 120 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. charge — a price
  3. club — a group
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. tear — to rip
  10. club — for dancing
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. club — for golf
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. charge — electricity
  17. craft — a skill
  18. craft — boats
  19. rash — hasty
  20. charge — in control
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. rash — a series

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