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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's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. tube — a container
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. scale — size or range
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. cap — a hat
  10. craft — boats
  11. fine — all right
  12. tube — the underground
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. cap — a lid
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. craft — a skill
  19. fine — high quality
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. scale — in music
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. mine — for digging
  24. cap — of ice

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