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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. lean — thin
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — a tin
  6. content — the amount
  7. rest — a break
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. can — to be able to
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bat — the animal
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. craft — a skill
  16. spring — of water
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. spring — the season
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. content — happy
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. spring — a coil

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