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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chip — for betting
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rest — what's left
  6. cold — not warm
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a match
  9. craft — boats
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. march — music
  14. rest — a break
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. rest — what's left
  22. perch — the fish
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

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