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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: kick · craft · pitch · straw · tube · wind · last · snap

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. snap — to click
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — completely
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. craft — boats
  13. wind — moving air
  14. tube — the underground
  15. last — finally
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — in football
  18. wind — moving air
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. craft — a skill
  24. tube — a container

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