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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: bulb · arm · key · capital · hand · wind · mug · fall

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. key — the most important part
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. mug — to rob
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bulb — for light
  7. fall — to drop
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. capital — money
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — a city
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. mug — a cup
  16. key — for a lock
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. fall — to drop
  20. key — in music
  21. hand — help
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. mug — a face
  24. fall — the season

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