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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: bay · capital · craft · spring · stand · cap · root · degree

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. stand — to bear
  4. spring — of water
  5. cap — a lid
  6. root — of a plant
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. degree — from a university
  9. craft — a skill
  10. root — the cause
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. root — of a word
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. degree — an amount
  15. cap — a hat
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. spring — a coil
  21. spring — the season
  22. cap — of ice
  23. capital — a city
  24. capital — money

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