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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 124 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. ball — a great time
  3. craft — a skill
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. row — to paddle
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. ball — a dance
  9. craft — boats
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. plane — a tool
  12. row — a line
  13. root — of a plant
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. root — of a word
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — to grow
  22. root — the cause
  23. kid — child
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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