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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 120 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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — help
  5. craft — boats
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. deal — to handle
  8. branch — a division
  9. chest — a box
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — money
  12. chest — of your body
  13. tube — the underground
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. tube — a container
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. capital — a city
  21. craft — a skill
  22. hand — in cards
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. chest — of your body

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