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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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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: straw · rush · bound · capital · deal · fan · fall · perch

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. capital — a city
  7. bound — obliged
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. fall — the season
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. perch — the fish
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. rush — hurry
  17. fall — to drop
  18. bound — tied together
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. deal — to handle
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. capital — money
  24. rush — a thrill

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