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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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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: ruler · mark · hand · bass · last · fine · kid · craft

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. fine — high quality
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. hand — in cards
  6. mark — a grade
  7. craft — a skill
  8. hand — help
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. mark — a trace
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fine — all right
  13. last — final
  14. bass — low music
  15. last — finally
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. bass — the fish
  21. last — to go on
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. craft — boats
  24. kid — child

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