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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. lean — to bend
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. game — wild animals
  5. scale — size or range
  6. craft — a skill
  7. bore — to tire
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bore — to drill
  10. face — to point toward
  11. stem — to come from
  12. face — to confront
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. spell — magic
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. lean — thin
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. spell — letters
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. scale — in music
  22. face — part of the head
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. game — a match

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