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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.

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: mine · ball · craft · capital · hand · rest · mate · bark

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. mate — a partner
  3. hand — in cards
  4. capital — a city
  5. rest — what's left
  6. mate — to breed
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. hand — help
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. craft — boats
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rest — a break
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. ball — a dance
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bark — to shout
  17. craft — a skill
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. capital — money
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a great time
  24. hand — part of the body

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