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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. file — a document
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spell — letters
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. spring — of water
  8. craft — boats
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. craft — a skill
  12. spell — a short time
  13. vault — a safe
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spell — magic
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. bat — the animal
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a tool
  24. craft — a handicraft

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