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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. craft — a skill
  4. lie — to recline
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. craft — boats
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. chest — of your body
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. capital — money
  15. band — a ring
  16. chip — to eat
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. chest — a box
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. capital — a city
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. chest — of your body

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