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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. net — for catching
  4. saw — the tool
  5. craft — boats
  6. net — in sport
  7. mine — for digging
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. craft — a skill
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. race — the arms race
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. capital — a city
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. race — humankind
  20. fall — to drop
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. capital — money
  23. net — after costs
  24. craft — a handicraft

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