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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. band — a music group
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. degree — an amount
  8. craft — a skill
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. face — part of the head
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. degree — from a university
  14. spring — a coil
  15. band — a ring
  16. spring — of water
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. spring — the season
  19. face — to point toward
  20. degree — temperature
  21. craft — boats
  22. face — to confront
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. band — a rubber band

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