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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · key · kid · hand · stand · saw · craft · cap

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. craft — a skill
  4. craft — boats
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. hand — in cards
  7. key — in music
  8. mine — for digging
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. cap — a lid
  14. key — the most important part
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. stand — to bear
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. cap — a hat
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. kid — to tease
  22. cap — of ice
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. key — for a lock

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