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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: board · saw · last · chest · capital · net · spring · bear

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. chest — a box
  3. spring — of water
  4. chest — of your body
  5. net — in sport
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. chest — of your body
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. last — final
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — money
  13. saw — the tool
  14. board — a committee
  15. spring — the season
  16. last — to go on
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. spring — a coil
  20. board — to get on
  21. saw — the tool
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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