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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. court — of a king
  4. craft — boats
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bore — to tire
  8. capital — a city
  9. craft — a skill
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. court — for sport
  12. cap — a hat
  13. row — a line
  14. cap — of ice
  15. tear — to rip
  16. cap — a lid
  17. court — of law
  18. capital — money
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to drill

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