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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 120 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: pit · rock · present · craft · net · plane · spring · bat

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. spring — of water
  3. bat — the animal
  4. pit — in a race
  5. rock — a stone
  6. present — there
  7. rock — music
  8. net — after costs
  9. present — a gift
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. net — for catching
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. spring — the season
  14. craft — a skill
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. net — in sport
  18. present — the time now
  19. pit — a hole
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. spring — a coil
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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