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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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. pass — a permit
  3. craft — a skill
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. spell — letters
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. craft — boats
  8. spell — magic
  9. land — a country
  10. land — ground
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. spell — a short time
  15. snap — to click
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. pound — a weight
  19. land — to come down
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. sharp — clever
  24. pass — to spend time

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