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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: craft · wound · kick · leaves · march · snap · field · last

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. field — a subject
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. craft — a skill
  8. kick — in football
  9. snap — to click
  10. march — music
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. march — the month
  13. last — final
  14. march — the month
  15. wound — an injury
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — to go on
  20. field — for sport
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. last — finally
  24. field — farmland

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