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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 116 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: craft · lie · kick · bat · hand · mine · stock · swing

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. stock — shares
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. swing — music
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. swing — to play on
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. swing — in golf
  16. stock — goods
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. lie — to recline
  20. craft — boats
  21. hand — help
  22. bat — the animal
  23. craft — a skill
  24. hand — in cards

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