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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 water is too ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. cold — an illness
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. spring — the season
  6. plane — a tool
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. shower — rain
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. craft — boats
  18. stem — to come from
  19. craft — a skill
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. shower — to wash

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