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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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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. can — a tin
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. march — the month
  8. firm — steady
  9. chair — a leader
  10. craft — a skill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. can — to be able to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. march — the month
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. firm — decided
  18. march — music
  19. firm — a company
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. can — a tin
  24. fall — the season

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