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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: wound · race · stick · date · kick · craft · net · bulb

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. race — a contest
  3. kick — in football
  4. wound — an injury
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. craft — a skill
  7. net — after costs
  8. race — the arms race
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. race — humankind
  12. net — for catching
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bulb — for light
  16. craft — boats
  17. date — the fruit
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. net — in sport
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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