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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: object · capital · can · bear · hand · cell · sharp · chair

  1. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a city
  2. can — a tin
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bear — the animal
  6. chair — a leader
  7. capital — money
  8. cell — in biology
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. hand — in cards
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. object — a thing
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. can — a tin
  15. cell — a phone
  16. hand — help
  17. bear — the animal
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. can — to be able to
  20. object — an aim
  21. object — to protest
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. chair — to sit on

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