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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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Word bank
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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: staff · spring · march · chip · kick · drill · craft · mug

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. march — the month
  3. craft — boats
  4. spring — of water
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. march — the month
  8. staff — employees
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. mug — a face
  11. march — music
  12. mug — a cup
  13. drill — a practice
  14. mug — to rob
  15. kick — in football
  16. drill — the tool
  17. craft — a skill
  18. chip — for betting
  19. spring — the season
  20. drill — army training
  21. spring — a coil
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. chip — to eat
  24. staff — a stick

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