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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: rock · pit · net · degree · toast · saw · craft · capital

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. rock — music
  3. capital — money
  4. toast — bread
  5. net — after costs
  6. capital — a city
  7. degree — from a university
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. pit — in a race
  10. net — in sport
  11. rock — a stone
  12. craft — a skill
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. degree — temperature
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. degree — an amount
  20. saw — the tool
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. saw — the tool
  23. net — for catching
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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