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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. sharp — clever
  5. rash — a series
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. bear — the animal
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rash — hasty
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. craft — boats
  18. date — the fruit
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. chest — a box

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