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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 120 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: hand · root · sharp · bank · game · capital · cold · wave

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. capital — money
  4. hand — help
  5. sharp — clever
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. bank — of a river
  13. root — of a plant
  14. cold — not warm
  15. root — the cause
  16. bank — for money
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. game — a match
  19. bank — for money
  20. root — of a word
  21. cold — an illness
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. capital — a city
  24. sharp — with an edge

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