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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: ground · snap · safe · craft · fan · hand · shower · dip

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. snap — to click
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. craft — a skill
  6. ground — a position
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. hand — in cards
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. dip — to sink
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. shower — to wash
  14. craft — boats
  15. shower — rain
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. ground — the earth
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. ground — crushed

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