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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. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a skill
  5. deal — to handle
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. cap — a hat
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. bound — tied together
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bound — certain
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. cap — a lid
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. wake — a trail
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bound — obliged

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