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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
468
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: arm · capital · wound · mark · chest · wake · cabinet · mug

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. wound — an injury
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mark — a trace
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. mark — a grade
  11. chest — a box
  12. mug — a cup
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. capital — a city
  15. capital — money
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wound — an injury
  22. mug — a face
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — a trail

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