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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 116 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: lash · pit · capital · craft · court · kid · face · prune

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. pit — a hole
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. court — of law
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. prune — to trim
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. craft — boats
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. pit — in a race
  13. craft — a skill
  14. face — part of the head
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. face — to point toward
  18. prune — to trim
  19. kid — to tease
  20. face — to confront
  21. capital — money
  22. kid — child
  23. court — of a king
  24. capital — a city

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