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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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. craft — a skill
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. cold — an illness
  5. capital — money
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. toast — bread
  10. craft — boats
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. capital — a city
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. plane — a tool
  21. cold — not warm
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. plane — an aircraft

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