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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. lean — thin
  4. club — for golf
  5. spring — a coil
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — a group
  9. rash — hasty
  10. craft — boats
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. can — a tin
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — of water
  16. can — a tin
  17. drill — a practice
  18. craft — a skill
  19. capital — a city
  20. lean — to bend
  21. drill — the tool
  22. can — to be able to
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. drill — army training

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