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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: racket · craft · drill · row · date · prune · chip · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. drill — army training
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. chip — for betting
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — boats
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chip — to eat
  10. drill — a practice
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. drill — the tool
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. row — to paddle
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. date — the fruit
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. capital — a city
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. row — a line

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