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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. craft — a skill
  5. game — a match
  6. ball — a dance
  7. game — wild animals
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. craft — boats
  10. ball — a great time
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. wake — a trail
  13. march — the month
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. march — the month
  19. stand — to bear
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. march — music
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. game — a kind of play

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