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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. court — of a king
  4. swing — music
  5. swing — to play on
  6. lean — thin
  7. craft — boats
  8. craft — a skill
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — a practice
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. lean — to bend
  16. court — of law
  17. drill — the tool
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. swing — in golf
  22. court — for sport
  23. spring — a coil
  24. spring — of water

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