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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. degree — from a university
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. degree — an amount
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mug — a face
  12. degree — temperature
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mug — to rob
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. mug — a cup
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — clever
  19. snap — to click
  20. craft — boats
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bat — the animal
  23. craft — a skill
  24. bat — in an idiom

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