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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: spring · craft · staff · face · lash · bat · degree · pop

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. craft — a skill
  3. spring — the season
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. pop — to visit
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. face — to point toward
  8. degree — an amount
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. spring — a coil
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. face — to confront
  14. craft — boats
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. pop — music
  17. degree — temperature
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. degree — from a university
  20. spring — of water
  21. pop — soda
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. staff — employees
  24. face — part of the head

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