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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: trunk · bore · lash · cue · last · capital · chair · sharp

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. capital — money
  3. cue — for pool
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. last — to go on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. cue — a hint
  11. last — finally
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. sharp — clever
  16. last — final
  17. bore — to tire
  18. capital — a city
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cue — a signal
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — an eyelash
  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