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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: suit · bat · straw · craft · jam · ground · degree · land

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. degree — an amount
  4. craft — a skill
  5. suit — to fit
  6. land — a country
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. degree — from a university
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ground — a position
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. land — ground
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bat — the animal
  20. ground — crushed
  21. land — to come down
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — in an idiom

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