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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: shower · ground · stock · craft · object · pass · cap · ball

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. craft — a skill
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. ground — crushed
  5. cap — a hat
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a dance
  9. object — to protest
  10. cap — a lid
  11. pass — a permit
  12. object — an aim
  13. craft — boats
  14. cap — of ice
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. object — a thing
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. stock — shares
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. ground — a position
  24. stock — goods

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