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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. land — a country
  4. scale — size or range
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. scale — in music
  8. spring — the season
  9. land — ground
  10. craft — a skill
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. tube — a container
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. lie — to recline
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. spring — of water
  18. stem — to come from
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fine — all right
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. land — to come down
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. spring — a coil

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