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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. capital — a city
  3. degree — from a university
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. cue — for pool
  9. degree — an amount
  10. fall — to drop
  11. rush — hurry
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. cue — a hint
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — for golf
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. fall — to drop
  19. degree — temperature
  20. club — a group
  21. craft — boats
  22. capital — money
  23. cue — a signal
  24. fall — the season

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