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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. court — of law
  4. swing — music
  5. craft — boats
  6. field — for sport
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wound — an injury
  9. degree — from a university
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. tube — the underground
  13. swing — in golf
  14. court — for sport
  15. swing — to play on
  16. degree — temperature
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. wound — an injury
  19. tube — a container
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. court — of a king
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. field — a subject
  24. field — farmland

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