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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. pit — a hole
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bound — obliged
  6. mine — for digging
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. pit — in a race
  10. craft — boats
  11. bound — tied together
  12. spell — magic
  13. stock — goods
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. bound — certain
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. spell — letters
  19. stock — shares
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. spell — a short time
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — a tool

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