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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. craft — a skill
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. present — there
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. craft — boats
  8. present — a gift
  9. rash — a series
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rash — hasty
  12. present — the time now
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. land — a country
  20. snap — to click
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. land — to come down
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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