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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. fall — to drop
  3. kid — child
  4. swing — to play on
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. swing — in golf
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. fall — the season
  9. rock — a stone
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — goods
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. swing — music
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. wound — an injury
  21. fall — to drop
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. rock — music
  24. craft — a skill

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