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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: mug · staff · rush · wound · foot · capital · file · firm

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. capital — a city
  3. rush — hurry
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — employees
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wound — an injury
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. firm — decided
  11. file — a line of people
  12. wound — an injury
  13. mug — a cup
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. file — a tool
  16. foot — a measure
  17. staff — a stick
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. mug — a face
  20. firm — a company
  21. capital — money
  22. mug — to rob
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. file — a document

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