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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. craft — a skill
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — size or range
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. kick — in football
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. craft — boats
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — to come from
  17. snap — to click
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. scale — in music
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rush — hurry
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. arm — part of the body

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