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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: foot · roll · lean · wind · stick · cap · wax · capital

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. capital — money
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to bend
  7. roll — a list
  8. cap — a hat
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. wax — to grow
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. foot — a measure
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wind — moving air
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. capital — a city
  21. cap — of ice
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. roll — a cake

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