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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. bass — the fish
  3. board — to get on
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. game — wild animals
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. shower — to wash
  9. craft — boats
  10. squash — the sport
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. game — a match
  13. shower — rain
  14. hand — help
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. hand — in cards
  19. squash — to crush
  20. board — a committee
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. march — the month
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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