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

Word bank: snap · patient · craft · tear · bass · toast

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. craft — boats
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. craft — a skill
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. tear — to rip
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bass — the fish
  12. tear — from crying
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. toast — bread
  17. bass — low music
  18. bass — the instrument

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