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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: firm · last · net · ball · snap · bat · craft · lean

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. lean — to bend
  3. snap — to click
  4. lean — thin
  5. last — final
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. ball — a dance
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. ball — a great time
  10. craft — a skill
  11. last — finally
  12. craft — boats
  13. last — to go on
  14. firm — steady
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. net — in sport
  18. bat — the animal
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. net — for catching
  21. firm — decided
  22. net — after costs
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. bat — in an idiom

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