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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. race — humankind
  3. bass — the fish
  4. craft — boats
  5. game — a match
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. bore — to tire
  10. craft — a skill
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bore — to drill
  15. spring — the season
  16. race — the arms race
  17. degree — an amount
  18. race — a contest
  19. bass — low music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — of water
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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