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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: snap · craft · rash · capital · wake · chair · pop · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. capital — a city
  5. pop — music
  6. wake — a trail
  7. snap — to click
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — a skill
  10. mine — for digging
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. pop — to visit
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. rash — a series
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. craft — boats
  20. pop — soda
  21. chair — a leader
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. capital — money

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