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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spring — the season
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. lie — to recline
  6. content — the amount
  7. craft — a skill
  8. last — finally
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. last — final
  11. mine — for digging
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. craft — boats
  15. spring — of water
  16. perch — the fish
  17. content — happy
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. spring — a coil
  20. last — to go on
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. plane — a tool
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. plane — in geometry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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