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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: snap · pound · leaves · chair · spell · rush · capital · straw

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. capital — money
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. spell — a short time
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. snap — to click
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. pound — a weight
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. spell — letters
  15. capital — a city
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. chair — a leader
  23. spell — magic
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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