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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: arm · land · deal · cold · fine · bear · shower · craft

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. craft — a skill
  3. land — to come down
  4. fine — high quality
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. land — a country
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. craft — boats
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. land — ground
  14. fine — all right
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. shower — rain
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bear — the animal
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bear — the animal
  24. cold — an illness

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