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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. band — a ring
  5. bear — the animal
  6. craft — a skill
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bear — the animal
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. present — there
  12. band — a music group
  13. capital — money
  14. craft — boats
  15. present — a gift
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. present — the time now
  19. race — humankind
  20. race — a contest
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. capital — a city

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