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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. mark — a trace
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — boats
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — in a road
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. rash — a series
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rash — hasty
  14. lean — to bend
  15. tear — to rip
  16. capital — a city
  17. lean — thin
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. capital — money
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. mark — a grade
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. mark — to pay attention

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