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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: calf · chest · mark · capital · cabinet · pound · last · season

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. chest — of your body
  4. season — in sport
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. mark — a trace
  14. capital — money
  15. last — finally
  16. season — of the year
  17. last — final
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. pound — a weight
  20. mark — a grade
  21. last — to go on
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. capital — a city
  24. calf — a young animal

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