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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. plane — a tool
  3. kid — to tease
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. craft — a skill
  8. game — wild animals
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. ground — a position
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. game — a match
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. swing — in golf
  16. kid — child
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. swing — music
  20. ground — the earth
  21. stem — to come from
  22. branch — a division
  23. craft — boats
  24. swing — to play on

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