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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: rush · capital · content · cold · lie · calf · chair · bank

  1. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bank — of a river
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. cold — an illness
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. chair — a leader
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. lie — to recline
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. capital — money
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. content — happy
  19. bank — for money
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bank — for money
  22. capital — a city
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. rush — a thrill

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