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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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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: hand · swing · season · pitcher · key · snap · land · craft

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. snap — to click
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. swing — music
  5. season — in sport
  6. hand — help
  7. craft — boats
  8. key — for a lock
  9. hand — in cards
  10. land — a country
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — to play on
  16. craft — a skill
  17. key — the most important part
  18. season — of the year
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. key — in music
  22. land — ground
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. land — to come down

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