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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: wave · capital · season · safe · hand · march · pitcher · arm

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. capital — a city
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. march — the month
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. hand — help
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. capital — money
  12. march — the month
  13. season — of the year
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. march — music
  24. arm — part of the body

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