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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.

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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: roll · craft · tear · net · season · pound · court · cell

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. season — in sport
  3. cell — a phone
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. net — in sport
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. roll — a cake
  8. cell — in biology
  9. court — for sport
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. season — of the year
  12. roll — a list
  13. tear — to rip
  14. court — of law
  15. court — of a king
  16. net — for catching
  17. tear — from crying
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. net — after costs
  23. craft — boats
  24. pound — a weight

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