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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. craft — a skill
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. craft — boats
  5. ground — a position
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — a coil
  11. press — newspapers
  12. spring — of water
  13. press — a publisher
  14. ground — the earth
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. last — final
  17. press — to push
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. last — to go on
  24. ground — crushed

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