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

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. craft — a skill
  4. capital — a city
  5. spring — the season
  6. stock — shares
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. court — for sport
  9. bore — to tire
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. pound — a weight
  12. court — of law
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. spring — of water
  18. stock — goods
  19. capital — money
  20. craft — boats
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. court — of a king
  23. spring — a coil
  24. coach — a trainer

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