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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 120 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. mate — to breed
  4. game — wild animals
  5. pop — soda
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. craft — boats
  11. craft — a skill
  12. game — a match
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bear — the animal
  15. mate — a partner
  16. pop — music
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pop — to visit
  21. shower — rain
  22. bear — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. arm — a part of something

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