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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. kick — in football
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pop — music
  6. cue — a signal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. cue — for pool
  9. chest — a box
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. craft — a skill
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. chest — of your body
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. chest — of your body
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. cue — a hint
  18. mine — for digging
  19. pop — soda
  20. pop — to visit
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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