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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 · march · capital · rest · firm · wound

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. march — the month
  3. craft — a skill
  4. march — the month
  5. capital — money
  6. wound — an injury
  7. march — music
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — a city
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. rest — what's left
  14. firm — a company
  15. firm — decided
  16. rest — what's left
  17. firm — steady
  18. rest — a break

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