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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. degree — from a university
  3. ground — a position
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. ground — crushed
  7. court — of law
  8. craft — a skill
  9. degree — temperature
  10. court — for sport
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. snap — to click
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. march — the month
  15. degree — an amount
  16. march — music
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. craft — boats
  20. ground — the earth
  21. chair — a leader
  22. march — the month
  23. court — of a king
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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