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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 · pound · capital · foot · wound · arm · coach · straw

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. pound — a weight
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. wound — an injury
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. capital — money
  12. wound — an injury
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. capital — a city
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. craft — a skill
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. foot — a measure
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. craft — a handicraft

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