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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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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: fine · dip · wake · kid · chest · capital · cell · lean

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. chest — a box
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. capital — money
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. dip — to sink
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. fine — all right
  10. chest — of your body
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. fine — high quality
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. chest — of your body
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cell — in biology
  17. kid — to tease
  18. capital — a city
  19. cell — a phone
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. wake — a trail
  23. lean — to bend
  24. kid — child

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