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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 116 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: hand · drill · capital · cabinet · hide · lean · bound · fine

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. lean — thin
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. drill — a practice
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. capital — money
  9. fine — all right
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. drill — the tool
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. hand — help
  19. bound — certain
  20. lean — to bend
  21. drill — army training
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. capital — a city
  24. fine — high quality

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