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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. craft — boats
  3. lie — to recline
  4. face — to point toward
  5. cell — in biology
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. face — to confront
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. ball — a dance
  12. face — part of the head
  13. craft — a skill
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. ball — a great time
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. spring — of water
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. spring — a coil

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