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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. squash — to crush
  3. toast — bread
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. date — the fruit
  6. craft — a skill
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. face — part of the head
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. face — to point toward
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. face — to confront
  17. squash — the sport
  18. date — on the calendar

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