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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: court · craft · bear · pound · mine · stand · lash · hand

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. hand — help
  4. craft — boats
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. court — for sport
  9. bear — the animal
  10. court — of a king
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. stand — to bear
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mine — for digging
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. hand — in cards
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pound — a weight
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. court — of law
  24. craft — a skill

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