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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 120 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: plane · craft · band · spell · bowl · drill · capital · cap

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cap — a hat
  3. drill — army training
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. plane — a tool
  7. drill — the tool
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — boats
  10. craft — a skill
  11. drill — a practice
  12. capital — a city
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. cap — a lid
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. capital — money
  20. band — a ring
  21. band — a music group
  22. cap — of ice
  23. spell — magic
  24. plane — in geometry

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