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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 120 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: nail · pop · craft · scale · wound · face · pitch · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. pop — soda
  4. craft — boats
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — to point toward
  7. wound — an injury
  8. scale — in music
  9. hand — in cards
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. craft — a skill
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pitch — completely
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. pop — music
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. face — part of the head
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wound — an injury
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. craft — a handicraft

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