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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. craft — boats
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. snap — to click
  6. lie — to recline
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rock — a stone
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. craft — a skill
  11. stock — goods
  12. wind — moving air
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — employees
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — music
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. stock — shares
  21. spring — the season
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. spring — of water
  24. staff — a stick

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