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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.

Make a worksheet

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: arm · fan · ground · kid · craft · straw · bass · pitcher

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bass — low music
  8. craft — boats
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. ground — a position
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. ground — crushed
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. ground — the earth
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bass — the fish
  23. craft — a skill
  24. arm — part of the body

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