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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: hand · scale · bound · rash · straw · capital · craft · bass

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. hand — help
  3. scale — size or range
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. scale — in music
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. craft — a skill
  10. capital — a city
  11. craft — boats
  12. hand — in cards
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bass — the fish
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. bass — low music
  18. bound — certain
  19. rash — hasty
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. capital — money
  22. rash — a series
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. capital — a big letter

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