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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: fall · spell · shower · field · capital · craft · rash · row

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. capital — a city
  4. field — farmland
  5. shower — rain
  6. capital — money
  7. field — a subject
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a skill
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. shower — to wash
  12. rash — a series
  13. field — for sport
  14. spell — letters
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. row — a line
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. spell — magic
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spell — a short time
  24. fall — to drop

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