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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. land — to come down
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. race — a contest
  5. land — a country
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. dip — to sink
  8. snap — to click
  9. land — ground
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. spring — the season
  13. face — part of the head
  14. race — the arms race
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. craft — a skill
  17. face — to point toward
  18. spring — of water
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. face — to confront
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. race — humankind
  24. dip — a sauce

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