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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.

Make a worksheet

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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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: wind · capital · chair · last · bark · calf

  1. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. last — final
  3. last — to go on
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. wind — moving air
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. last — finally
  10. wind — moving air
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. bark — to shout
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bark — of a tree

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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