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

Word bank: rest · kid · mark · craft · saw · wound · bass · foot

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. craft — boats
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. mark — a grade
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bass — low music
  13. kid — child
  14. wound — an injury
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. wound — an injury
  17. craft — a skill
  18. rest — a break
  19. foot — a measure
  20. rest — what's left
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rest — what's left
  24. saw — the tool

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