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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: roll · shower · pound · snap · kid · net · craft · spell

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. craft — a skill
  4. kid — child
  5. spell — letters
  6. roll — a list
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. shower — to wash
  9. net — in sport
  10. craft — boats
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. pound — a weight
  16. roll — a cake
  17. shower — rain
  18. snap — to click
  19. spell — a short time
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. kid — to tease
  22. spell — magic
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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