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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 116 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. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a skill
  2. capital — money
  3. net — after costs
  4. march — the month
  5. suit — in cards
  6. wound — an injury
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. capital — a city
  9. game — a match
  10. wound — an injury
  11. march — the month
  12. dip — to sink
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — in sport
  16. suit — clothes
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. game — wild animals
  23. march — music
  24. suit — to fit

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