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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: craft · shower · sharp · pound · last · leaves · fall · firm

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. firm — steady
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. craft — a skill
  6. shower — rain
  7. sharp — clever
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. last — final
  11. firm — a company
  12. firm — decided
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — the season
  15. last — finally
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. craft — boats
  20. shower — to wash
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. pound — a weight
  24. last — to go on

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