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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 120 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. capital — money
  3. mate — a friend
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. craft — boats
  7. capital — a city
  8. snap — to click
  9. mate — a partner
  10. last — to go on
  11. ball — a dance
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. mate — to breed
  16. rash — a series
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rash — hasty
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. last — finally
  21. ball — a great time
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. craft — a skill

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