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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. scale — in music
  3. craft — boats
  4. scale — size or range
  5. march — the month
  6. craft — a skill
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. net — after costs
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. field — a subject
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. net — for catching
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. net — in sport
  16. field — farmland
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. kid — child
  19. field — for sport
  20. march — the month
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. kid — to tease
  23. march — music
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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