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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  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. suit — in cards
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. craft — boats
  6. bat — the animal
  7. craft — a skill
  8. spring — the season
  9. ground — a position
  10. suit — to fit
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stock — shares
  13. kick — in football
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. prune — to trim
  16. ground — the earth
  17. stock — goods
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. ground — crushed
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. suit — clothes
  22. spring — a coil
  23. prune — to trim
  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