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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. last — final
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. plane — a tool
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — boats
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. craft — a skill
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. capital — money
  14. game — wild animals
  15. season — in sport
  16. capital — a city
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. last — finally
  21. last — to go on
  22. season — of the year
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. game — a match

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