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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — a coil
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. date — the fruit
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. can — a tin
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. pitch — completely
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. spring — of water
  23. can — a tin
  24. craft — a handicraft

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