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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. sharp — clever
  6. chair — a leader
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to click
  12. chip — to eat
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. craft — boats
  21. chip — for betting
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. racket — a loud noise

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