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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. squash — to crush
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — a price
  5. fall — to drop
  6. race — humankind
  7. fall — the season
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. bore — to tire
  12. mine — for digging
  13. bore — to drill
  14. charge — in control
  15. kick — in football
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. race — a contest
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. race — the arms race
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. fall — to drop

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