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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. club — for golf
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. clip — for paper
  6. club — for dancing
  7. land — a country
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a tool
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. land — to come down
  13. ball — a dance
  14. craft — boats
  15. club — a group
  16. ball — a great time
  17. land — ground
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. tube — the underground
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. file — a document
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. craft — a skill
  24. tube — a container

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