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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: capital · net · craft · patient · ruler · bark · lash · chest

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. bark — to shout
  3. capital — money
  4. net — in sport
  5. chest — a box
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. craft — boats
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. capital — a city
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. net — after costs
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chest — of your body
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. net — for catching
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. chest — of your body
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. craft — a skill

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