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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: bowl · land · bark · face · mate · stem · craft · snap

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. mate — to breed
  3. craft — boats
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. land — a country
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. mate — a friend
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — part of the head
  12. land — ground
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. land — to come down
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. face — to point toward
  23. snap — to click
  24. stem — to come from

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