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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. craft — a skill
  5. race — a contest
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bank — of a river
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. bank — for money
  11. capital — money
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. pit — a hole
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pit — in a race
  18. season — of the year
  19. capital — a city
  20. bank — for money
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. race — humankind
  24. season — in sport

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