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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. game — a match
  4. bore — to drill
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. bore — to tire
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. court — of a king
  10. craft — a skill
  11. court — of law
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. game — wild animals
  14. root — of a plant
  15. capital — money
  16. craft — boats
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. capital — a city
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. court — for sport
  23. root — of a word
  24. root — the cause

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