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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 116 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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. last — finally
  3. cell — a phone
  4. craft — a skill
  5. fall — the season
  6. kid — to tease
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fall — to drop
  9. ball — a great time
  10. last — to go on
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. perch — the fish
  14. craft — boats
  15. tube — the underground
  16. cell — in biology
  17. tube — a container
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. fall — to drop
  21. last — final
  22. ball — a dance
  23. kid — child
  24. cell — in a prison

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