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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: capital · club · lash · fork · drill · net · row · craft

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. net — after costs
  4. drill — the tool
  5. fork — in a road
  6. row — a line
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. craft — a skill
  12. drill — army training
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. club — for golf
  16. net — in sport
  17. club — a group
  18. capital — money
  19. craft — boats
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. net — for catching
  22. drill — a practice
  23. row — to paddle
  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