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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 120 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: pound · capital · mug · net · mark · rash · chair · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. rash — a series
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. chair — a leader
  7. mug — a face
  8. mark — a trace
  9. net — after costs
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. mug — to rob
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. capital — a city
  14. capital — money
  15. pound — a weight
  16. rash — hasty
  17. net — for catching
  18. net — in sport
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. mark — a grade
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mug — a cup
  23. hand — in cards
  24. capital — a big letter

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