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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. craft — a skill
  3. ground — crushed
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. ground — the earth
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. spring — of water
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. ground — a position
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. tube — a container
  18. craft — boats
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. wound — an injury
  21. tube — the underground
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. spring — a coil
  24. wound — an injury

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