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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: bowl · prune · craft · lash · kid · land · drill · stick

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. drill — army training
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — to tease
  6. drill — a practice
  7. craft — a skill
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. drill — the tool
  11. land — a country
  12. kid — child
  13. land — ground
  14. prune — to trim
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. land — to come down
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. craft — boats

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