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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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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: bank · kid · wind · ruler · rest · racket · chair · capital

  1. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bank — for money
  6. kid — child
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. capital — a city
  9. rest — what's left
  10. bank — of a river
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. bank — for money
  13. rest — what's left
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. wind — moving air
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wind — moving air
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. rest — a break
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. kid — to tease

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