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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — the season
  3. drill — the tool
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — army training
  6. game — a match
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. chip — to eat
  9. craft — boats
  10. spring — of water
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. wind — moving air
  13. chair — a leader
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. chip — for betting
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — wild animals
  20. craft — a skill
  21. wind — moving air
  22. capital — money
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. craft — a handicraft

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