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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. staff — a stick
  5. spring — of water
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. staff — employees
  8. spell — letters
  9. face — part of the head
  10. hand — help
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. face — to confront
  13. craft — a skill
  14. spring — the season
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. spring — a coil
  17. staff — employees
  18. spell — magic
  19. bulb — for light
  20. hand — in cards
  21. spell — a short time
  22. craft — boats
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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