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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: foot · bark · mouse · cap · straw · wind · capital · rush

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. cap — a hat
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a lid
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rush — hurry
  15. capital — a city
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. capital — money
  24. bark — to shout

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