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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. can — a tin
  3. rash — a series
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. ground — crushed
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. can — a tin
  12. craft — a skill
  13. can — to be able to
  14. rash — hasty
  15. clip — a video
  16. deal — to handle
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. fine — high quality
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — the earth

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