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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: mark · kid · sharp · mug · fork · temple · wind · capital

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mug — a cup
  4. sharp — clever
  5. mug — to rob
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. kid — child
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. capital — a city
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. capital — money
  15. mark — a trace
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. mark — a grade
  19. fork — in a road
  20. mug — a face
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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