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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: stand · bass · craft · fan · cap · court · nail · wake

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. craft — boats
  4. court — for sport
  5. court — of law
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. wake — a trail
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. cap — a lid
  15. craft — a skill
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bass — low music
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. court — of a king
  24. stand — to bear

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