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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: net · arm · snap · kid · craft · bore · face · drill

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  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. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. kid — child
  4. net — after costs
  5. kid — to tease
  6. craft — a skill
  7. drill — a practice
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bore — to tire
  10. drill — the tool
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bore — to drill
  16. net — in sport
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. craft — boats
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. face — to confront
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. net — for catching
  23. drill — army training
  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