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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. shower — to wash
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. stock — goods
  9. shower — rain
  10. craft — boats
  11. bat — the animal
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. rest — what's left
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. craft — a skill
  20. stock — shares
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. spring — the season
  24. pitcher — a jug

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