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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. rock — music
  3. craft — boats
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. craft — a skill
  6. swing — in golf
  7. swing — music
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. pass — a permit
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — in a race
  17. perch — the fish
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. hand — help
  20. shower — rain
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. rock — a stone
  23. swing — to play on
  24. hand — in cards

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