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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: game · bore · snap · kid · cell · board · craft · net

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. craft — boats
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. snap — to click
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. board — to get on
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. net — after costs
  13. kid — child
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. net — for catching
  17. game — wild animals
  18. bore — to tire
  19. craft — a skill
  20. cell — in biology
  21. game — a match
  22. kid — to tease
  23. net — in sport
  24. board — a committee

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