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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: spring · sharp · chair · capital · bound · mate · game · dip

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — a friend
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. mate — to breed
  8. dip — to sink
  9. game — wild animals
  10. spring — a coil
  11. capital — money
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. capital — a city
  15. sharp — clever
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. spring — the season
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bound — certain
  22. spring — of water
  23. game — a match
  24. chair — a leader

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