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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. net — after costs
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. craft — boats
  5. net — for catching
  6. spring — the season
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. net — in sport
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — in a race
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. rash — hasty
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. craft — a skill
  19. rash — a series
  20. pit — a hole
  21. wax — to grow
  22. spring — a coil
  23. fork — in a road
  24. fork — a garden tool

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