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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 120 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
468
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: capital · ground · drill · charge · last · craft · arm · file

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. ground — crushed
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. file — a line of people
  6. capital — a city
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. craft — a skill
  10. charge — a price
  11. file — a document
  12. ground — a position
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. drill — a practice
  15. drill — the tool
  16. craft — boats
  17. charge — in control
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. file — a tool
  20. ground — the earth
  21. last — to go on
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. capital — money
  24. drill — army training

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