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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: straw · craft · bat · snap · cap · sharp · chip · toast

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. craft — boats
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. snap — to click
  8. cap — a hat
  9. chip — to eat
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — of ice
  13. craft — a skill
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. chip — for betting
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. toast — bread
  24. sharp — exactly

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