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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: bear · firm · craft · bat · land · cap · current · march

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. cap — a hat
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. firm — steady
  7. bear — the animal
  8. current — electric
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. cap — of ice
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. current — of water
  13. land — to come down
  14. current — happening now
  15. craft — boats
  16. firm — a company
  17. land — ground
  18. craft — a skill
  19. cap — a lid
  20. march — the month
  21. land — a country
  22. bear — the animal
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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