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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: cell · craft · ball · wake · band · cap · rash · stock

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. cap — a hat
  3. cell — a phone
  4. rash — hasty
  5. craft — a skill
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. wake — a trail
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cap — a lid
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. band — a ring
  16. ball — a great time
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. stock — goods
  19. ball — a dance
  20. rash — a series
  21. stock — shares
  22. band — a music group
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. craft — a handicraft

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