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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: toast · straw · craft · bat · hide · kick

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. bat — the animal
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. toast — bread
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. kick — in football
  14. craft — a skill
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. straw — to clutch at straws

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