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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 120 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. craft — boats
  3. cell — a phone
  4. spring — the season
  5. craft — a skill
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. spring — of water
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. snap — to click
  12. spring — a coil
  13. wind — moving air
  14. last — finally
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. last — to go on
  17. lie — to recline
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. last — final

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