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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · spell · capital · wind · bound · hand · chair · mug

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bound — certain
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. mug — a face
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. capital — a city
  11. rush — hurry
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bound — obliged
  16. mug — to rob
  17. chair — a leader
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — magic
  20. spell — a short time
  21. capital — money
  22. hand — help
  23. mug — a cup
  24. hand — in cards

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