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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. spring — of water
  3. present — a gift
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. spring — the season
  6. can — to be able to
  7. face — to point toward
  8. face — to confront
  9. present — there
  10. hand — in cards
  11. can — a tin
  12. club — for golf
  13. craft — boats
  14. club — a group
  15. spring — a coil
  16. present — the time now
  17. club — for dancing
  18. face — part of the head
  19. hand — help
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bass — the fish
  23. craft — a skill
  24. bass — low music

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