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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. pit — in a race
  3. craft — boats
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. mate — to breed
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. face — to confront
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. chest — of your body
  12. tear — to rip
  13. face — part of the head
  14. craft — a skill
  15. chest — a box
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. tear — from crying
  21. face — to point toward
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pit — a hole

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