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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. ball — a great time
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. row — to paddle
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. lean — to bend
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. net — after costs
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. ball — a dance
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. net — for catching
  18. lean — thin
  19. row — a line
  20. saw — the tool
  21. snap — to click
  22. craft — boats
  23. tear — to rip
  24. craft — a skill

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