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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 · fine · stock · bat · trunk · cabinet · rash · face

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. face — part of the head
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. fine — all right
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. face — to confront
  9. face — to point toward
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — hasty
  15. craft — boats
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. fine — high quality
  20. stock — shares
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stock — goods
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. cabinet — ministers

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