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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 120 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. shower — to wash
  3. craft — boats
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. present — there
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. stock — goods
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stock — shares
  12. object — to protest
  13. craft — a skill
  14. shower — rain
  15. kid — child
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. cold — not warm
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. object — an aim
  22. object — a thing
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. present — a gift

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