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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: craft · bat · can · kid · drill · prune · charge · rush

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. kid — child
  3. craft — boats
  4. can — to be able to
  5. kid — to tease
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. drill — army training
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. prune — to trim
  13. charge — a price
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bat — the animal
  16. drill — a practice
  17. drill — the tool
  18. charge — in control
  19. charge — electricity
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. prune — to trim

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