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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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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: bulb · lie · capital · wound · cell · safe · hand · bear

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. capital — money
  3. bulb — for light
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. cell — a phone
  6. capital — a city
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bulb — for light
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. hand — help
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. wound — an injury
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. wound — an injury
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. lie — to recline
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. cell — in biology

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