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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. net — after costs
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. net — for catching
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. net — in sport
  12. face — to confront
  13. capital — a city
  14. staff — employees
  15. fork — in a road
  16. face — to point toward
  17. capital — money
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. staff — a stick
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. craft — a skill
  23. staff — employees
  24. arm — part of the 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