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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. hand — help
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. pop — music
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pop — soda
  8. track — a song
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. craft — boats
  11. track — a path
  12. pop — to visit
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. snap — to click
  15. chest — of your body
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. chest — of your body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. track — to keep track
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chest — a box

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