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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: key · capital · game · nail · file · drill · pound · craft

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. capital — money
  3. key — for a lock
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. game — a match
  6. key — the most important part
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. capital — a city
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. drill — a practice
  12. pound — a weight
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. game — wild animals
  17. file — a line of people
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. drill — the tool
  24. key — in music

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