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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bound — certain
  3. craft — boats
  4. board — to get on
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. row — to paddle
  8. board — a committee
  9. bound — tied together
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bound — obliged
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. row — a line
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. ball — a dance
  17. craft — a skill
  18. craft — a handicraft

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