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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: capital · bear · kid · ground · bore · wound · leaves · trunk

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bore — to drill
  7. ground — a position
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. capital — money
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. ground — the earth
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. bear — the animal
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bore — to tire
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. kid — child
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. capital — a city
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. wound — an injury
  24. ground — crushed

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