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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 120 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: land · snap · last · sharp · foot · chair · stem · craft

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. last — final
  5. land — to come down
  6. last — to go on
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. chair — a leader
  11. land — ground
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. stem — to come from
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — boats
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. land — a country
  20. snap — to click
  21. sharp — clever
  22. foot — a measure
  23. last — finally
  24. chair — to sit on

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