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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 120 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: chair · can · stick · bound · staff · capital · arm · hand

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. bound — certain
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. chair — a leader
  5. can — to be able to
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. hand — help
  8. bound — tied together
  9. hand — in cards
  10. bound — obliged
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. staff — employees
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. can — a tin
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. staff — employees
  21. capital — money
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. staff — a stick
  24. can — a tin

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