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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. face — to point toward
  3. spring — of water
  4. cold — an illness
  5. spring — the season
  6. rash — a series
  7. row — a line
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. row — to paddle
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. rash — hasty
  15. face — part of the head
  16. spring — a coil
  17. net — after costs
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. craft — boats
  22. cold — not warm
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. face — to confront

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