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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. capital — a city
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. capital — money
  7. game — a match
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. kick — in football
  13. craft — boats
  14. last — final
  15. craft — a skill
  16. last — to go on
  17. hand — help
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. last — finally
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. hand — in cards
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pitcher — a jug

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