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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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. band — a ring
  5. spring — a coil
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. plane — a tool
  9. spring — of water
  10. hand — help
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. craft — a skill
  13. spring — the season
  14. game — a match
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. craft — boats
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. hand — in cards
  23. game — wild animals
  24. band — a music group

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