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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 120 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: row · drill · kick · stick · craft · spell · pop · field

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. pop — to visit
  5. row — to paddle
  6. craft — a skill
  7. field — a subject
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. row — a line
  11. pop — soda
  12. field — for sport
  13. craft — boats
  14. field — farmland
  15. spell — magic
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. drill — a practice
  19. spell — a short time
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. kick — in football
  23. spell — letters
  24. pop — music

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