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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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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: arm · craft · wind · saw · race · plane · mine · capital

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. craft — a skill
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. saw — the tool
  5. capital — a city
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. wind — moving air
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. craft — boats
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. mine — for digging
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — a contest
  21. race — humankind
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. arm — part of the body

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