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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. snap — to click
  4. bat — the animal
  5. craft — a skill
  6. rash — hasty
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. land — ground
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. craft — boats
  12. pass — a permit
  13. present — the time now
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. land — a country
  17. present — a gift
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. present — there
  24. land — to come down

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