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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: craft · perch · tear · chip · present · capital

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. tear — from crying
  3. chip — for betting
  4. craft — boats
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. capital — money
  7. craft — a skill
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. present — a gift
  10. present — the time now
  11. perch — the fish
  12. chip — to eat
  13. tear — to rip
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. capital — a city
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. tear — from crying

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