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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · bear · pit · face · wind · march

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. march — music
  3. pit — in a race
  4. march — the month
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. pit — a hole
  7. craft — a skill
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bear — the animal
  12. face — part of the head
  13. march — the month
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bear — the animal
  17. craft — boats
  18. face — to point toward

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