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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. craft — a skill
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spring — of water
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. march — the month
  8. spring — a coil
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. tear — from crying
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lie — to recline
  13. current — of water
  14. tear — to rip
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. current — electric
  21. current — happening now
  22. craft — boats
  23. spring — the season
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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