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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: face · rush · season · drill · capital · arm · craft · saw

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. capital — money
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. drill — a practice
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. rush — hurry
  9. face — to point toward
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. saw — the tool
  12. drill — the tool
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. capital — a city
  15. craft — boats
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. face — to confront
  19. face — part of the head
  20. drill — army training
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. craft — a skill
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — in sport

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