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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. chest — of your body
  3. craft — boats
  4. chest — of your body
  5. craft — a skill
  6. hand — help
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. game — wild animals
  10. suit — in cards
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. capital — money
  13. hand — in cards
  14. capital — a city
  15. last — finally
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. pitch — completely
  18. last — to go on
  19. chest — a box
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. suit — clothes
  22. game — a match
  23. last — final
  24. capital — a big letter

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