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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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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: march · chest · craft · track · deal · capital

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. capital — money
  3. chest — of your body
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. capital — a city
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. chest — a box
  10. craft — a skill
  11. march — music
  12. deal — to handle
  13. craft — boats
  14. march — the month
  15. chest — of your body
  16. track — a path
  17. track — to keep track
  18. march — the month

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