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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 120 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. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. ball — a dance
  3. march — the month
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rush — hurry
  7. sharp — clever
  8. scale — size or range
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. firm — a company
  15. firm — decided
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. scale — in music
  20. march — the month
  21. ball — a great time
  22. march — music
  23. firm — steady
  24. perch — for a bird

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