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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. kid — to tease
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. craft — boats
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. kid — child
  8. roll — a cake
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. roll — a list
  11. staff — employees
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. craft — a skill
  14. toast — bread
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. capital — a city
  19. fork — in a road
  20. capital — money
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. roll — on a roll

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