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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: firm · net · mine · wind · capital · craft · straw · chip

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. capital — a city
  3. net — after costs
  4. chip — to eat
  5. craft — boats
  6. firm — decided
  7. capital — money
  8. craft — a skill
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — for catching
  12. firm — steady
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mine — for digging
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. firm — a company
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. chip — for betting
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. net — in sport
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. mine — belonging to me

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