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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. capital — a city
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. craft — a skill
  6. craft — boats
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. clip — for paper
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. face — to confront
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. face — part of the head
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. capital — money
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. clip — a video
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. clip — to cut
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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