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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. craft — a skill
  3. lean — to bend
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. craft — boats
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. prune — to trim
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. hand — in cards
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. fine — all right
  13. capital — a city
  14. fine — high quality
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. prune — to trim
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. lean — thin
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. hand — help
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. branch — a division

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