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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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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  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. pitcher — a jug
  2. spring — a coil
  3. craft — a skill
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. staff — employees
  6. kick — in football
  7. fall — the season
  8. drill — army training
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. drill — a practice
  14. staff — employees
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. staff — a stick
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. craft — boats
  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