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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. craft — a skill
  3. cell — in biology
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. mug — to rob
  8. mug — a face
  9. chest — of your body
  10. craft — boats
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. capital — money
  13. scale — in music
  14. mug — a cup
  15. chest — of your body
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. capital — a city
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — a phone
  23. scale — size or range
  24. chest — a box

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