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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: bass · craft · lash · net · deal · court · rule · spring

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. court — of a king
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. deal — to handle
  5. spring — the season
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. rule — a law
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — of water
  14. bass — the fish
  15. net — in sport
  16. craft — a skill
  17. net — after costs
  18. bass — low music
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. court — of law
  23. court — for sport
  24. net — for catching

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