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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: sharp · spring · pitch · craft · net · firm · bore · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. craft — a skill
  5. net — after costs
  6. firm — decided
  7. net — in sport
  8. capital — a city
  9. spring — the season
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. firm — steady
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. craft — boats
  15. net — for catching
  16. bore — to drill
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. bore — to tire
  19. pitch — completely
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. firm — a company
  23. sharp — clever
  24. spring — of water

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