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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. roll — a list
  4. craft — boats
  5. capital — money
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. roll — a cake
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. kid — to tease
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. capital — a city
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pitch — completely
  15. kid — child
  16. chip — to eat
  17. fork — in a road
  18. chip — for betting
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. craft — a skill

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