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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: safe · craft · fork · chest · capital · spring · snap · bound

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. capital — a city
  5. chest — of your body
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. craft — boats
  11. capital — money
  12. snap — to click
  13. chest — of your body
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bound — obliged
  16. spring — of water
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. bound — certain
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bound — tied together
  22. spring — the season
  23. fork — in a road
  24. safe — out of danger

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