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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. snap — to click
  3. march — the month
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. land — ground
  6. can — to be able to
  7. march — the month
  8. craft — a skill
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. can — a tin
  11. craft — boats
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. dip — to sink
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. can — a tin
  17. land — to come down
  18. game — a match
  19. game — wild animals
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. land — a country
  22. march — music
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. craft — a handicraft

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