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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. craft — a skill
  3. roll — a cake
  4. clip — to cut
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. roll — a list
  8. clip — a video
  9. club — a group
  10. face — to point toward
  11. scale — size or range
  12. club — for golf
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. face — to confront
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. club — for dancing
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. craft — boats
  22. clip — for paper
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. roll — on a roll

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