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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. last — finally
  3. last — final
  4. content — happy
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. craft — boats
  7. spring — a coil
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. staff — a stick
  10. staff — employees
  11. bulb — for light
  12. roll — a cake
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. roll — a list
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. spring — of water
  17. content — the amount
  18. last — to go on
  19. bulb — for light
  20. squash — to crush
  21. craft — a skill
  22. squash — the sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. spring — the season

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