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

Word bank: kid · temple · craft · capital · bowl · deal

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. craft — boats
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. deal — to handle
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. capital — money
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. craft — a skill
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. capital — a city
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bowl — to roll

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