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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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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: spell · wind · deal · capital · content · wake · fork · chair

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. capital — money
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. fork — in a road
  8. content — happy
  9. wind — moving air
  10. deal — to handle
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. chair — a leader
  14. spell — magic
  15. capital — a city
  16. spell — letters
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. wake — a trail
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. spell — a short time
  24. content — the amount

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