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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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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. land — to come down
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. pound — a weight
  5. land — ground
  6. snap — to click
  7. stand — to bear
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. land — a country
  11. kick — in football
  12. craft — a skill
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. craft — a handicraft

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