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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: pound · craft · last · staff · fork · present · kid · mark

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. last — finally
  5. last — final
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. present — the time now
  9. staff — employees
  10. last — to go on
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. kid — child
  15. craft — a skill
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. staff — a stick
  18. present — a gift
  19. fork — in a road
  20. craft — boats
  21. staff — employees
  22. present — there
  23. kid — to tease
  24. pound — a weight

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