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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spring · pound · march · current · craft · kick · last · bat

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. craft — boats
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. last — final
  5. kick — in football
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. last — finally
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. current — happening now
  10. last — to go on
  11. march — the month
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. current — electric
  14. spring — the season
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — of water
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bat — the animal
  20. march — music
  21. craft — a skill
  22. march — the month
  23. pound — a weight
  24. current — of water

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