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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bank — for money
  3. fall — the season
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. firm — decided
  7. spring — a coil
  8. craft — a skill
  9. firm — a company
  10. clip — for paper
  11. craft — boats
  12. clip — a video
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bank — of a river
  15. fall — to drop
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. fall — to drop
  18. date — the fruit
  19. clip — to cut
  20. firm — steady
  21. spring — the season
  22. scale — size or range
  23. scale — in music
  24. bank — for money

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