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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · chair · field · can · fall · hide · dip · squash

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. chair — a leader
  3. fall — to drop
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. fall — to drop
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. dip — to sink
  9. fall — the season
  10. can — to be able to
  11. field — a subject
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. squash — to crush
  16. craft — boats
  17. field — for sport
  18. squash — the sport
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. field — farmland
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. chair — a professorship

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