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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: pitcher · capital · net · calf · cell · bound · arm · perch

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bound — certain
  4. capital — a city
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. perch — the fish
  9. net — after costs
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. cell — in biology
  16. net — in sport
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. net — for catching
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. bound — obliged

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