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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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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: deal · field · snap · staff · craft · kid · cold · tube

  1. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. field — farmland
  3. field — a subject
  4. craft — boats
  5. field — for sport
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. cold — an illness
  10. kid — child
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cold — not warm
  15. staff — employees
  16. deal — to handle
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. staff — employees
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — the underground
  23. staff — a stick
  24. snap — to click

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