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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: race · shower · jam · straw · plane · craft · pit · land

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. race — humankind
  6. shower — to wash
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. craft — boats
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. craft — a skill
  14. race — a contest
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. land — a country
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pit — in a race
  21. shower — rain
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. land — ground
  24. race — the arms race

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