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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 116 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: kid · sharp · swing · capital · craft · field · cabinet · chair

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — farmland
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — music
  7. kid — to tease
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. craft — a skill
  12. chair — a leader
  13. field — for sport
  14. capital — a city
  15. sharp — clever
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. kid — child
  18. capital — money
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. field — a subject

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