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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: club · pitcher · capital · degree · craft · deal

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. craft — a skill
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. craft — boats
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. degree — from a university
  8. club — a group
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. degree — temperature
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — for dancing
  13. capital — money
  14. deal — to handle
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. degree — an amount
  18. pitcher — a jug

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