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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: bat · capital · hide · fine · field · craft · racket · can

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. field — for sport
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. can — to be able to
  9. fine — all right
  10. field — a subject
  11. craft — boats
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. can — a tin
  17. craft — a skill
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. fine — high quality
  21. bat — the animal
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. field — farmland
  24. can — a tin

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