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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. kid — to tease
  3. mine — for digging
  4. tube — a container
  5. season — of the year
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. season — in sport
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. lean — to bend
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. kid — child
  15. bat — the animal
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. tube — the underground
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. craft — boats
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. lean — thin
  22. craft — a skill
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. season — to add flavour

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