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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. cap — of ice
  3. plane — a tool
  4. craft — a skill
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. land — ground
  8. chair — a leader
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. land — to come down
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — a hat
  13. land — a country
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. last — finally
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. row — a line
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. last — final
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. row — to paddle
  22. craft — boats
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. last — to go on

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