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

Word bank: swing · plane · craft · bear · vault · row · cap · jam

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. row — a line
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. vault — a safe
  5. bear — the animal
  6. craft — boats
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. bear — the animal
  9. row — to paddle
  10. swing — to play on
  11. cap — a lid
  12. craft — a skill
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. swing — in golf
  16. cap — a hat
  17. swing — music
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. plane — a tool
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. jam — in traffic

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