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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. craft — a skill
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. tear — from crying
  7. field — a subject
  8. tear — from crying
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. tear — to rip
  12. squash — to crush
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. ball — a great time
  15. field — farmland
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. field — for sport
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. craft — boats
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. squash — the sport
  22. ball — a dance
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. coach — a trainer

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