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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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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: ground · arm · craft · saw · row · bark · snap · cabinet

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — to shout
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. craft — a skill
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. craft — boats
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. ground — the earth
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. snap — to click
  19. row — a line
  20. ground — a position
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. row — to paddle
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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