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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.

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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: snap · shower · present · wind · craft · wound · row · club

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. row — a line
  4. shower — to wash
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. present — the time now
  7. shower — rain
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. craft — boats
  10. wind — moving air
  11. row — to paddle
  12. wound — an injury
  13. club — a group
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. club — for golf
  16. wind — moving air
  17. club — for dancing
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. snap — to click
  23. craft — a skill
  24. craft — a handicraft

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