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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. hand — in cards
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. ball — a dance
  5. game — a match
  6. stock — shares
  7. cue — a hint
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. hand — help
  10. game — wild animals
  11. craft — boats
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. stock — goods
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — for pool
  20. craft — a skill
  21. ball — a great time
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. mine — an explosive

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